Kingdom Hearts: Cypher - Final Mix
by ShadowDragon94
Summary: Hearts can be connected by time, worlds, and emotions. But how long can they hold on to a memory of something that seems so distant? Seeking answers, and someone you love, can ultimately reach past all barriers, and can create a path to one another that will ultimately lead into another story that is awaiting to be written {Story #4 in The World Tree Series}
1. Chapter 1: Scattered Dream

_Dear Readers,_

 _After the completion of Kingdom Hearts: Birth by Dreams – Final Mix, I have decided to go ahead and work on getting Cypher's Final Mix up to you. This story will be quite a bit longer, and will expand upon the situations that the original one didn't. I intend to give some time to everyone's families, and the parents themselves. So, if you read the original story, you'll know where the content changed and where it's the same._

 _ **Disclaimer:**_ _ **All original titles, plotlines, characters, settings, abilities, weaponry, and events belong to Tetsuya Nomura, Square Enix & Disney Interactive Studios.**_

 _ **Claimer:**_ _ **OCs, Keyblades of my creation, settings, abilities, weaponry, and worlds that do not appear in Disney/Square Enix/Anime/Manga properties belong to me.**_

 _If you have any questions, please PM me, as it will be easier for me to answer your questions._

 _ **Enjoy the story.**_

 **{…..}**

 _Blue light gleamed around them, the sound of waves crashing catching the attention of the two teenagers as they held onto the hands of their friend after finally being reunited. Cyan eyes looked at the orbs of light that fell like stardust around them, as they held one another's hands firmly, looking at one another, relief flooding them as sky-blue eyes, shining with warmth, and peace kept their eyes on them while he kept his black-gloved hands clasped with theirs._

" _Riku!" the boy's light voice called out to the silver-haired fourteen-year-old, causing a small sense of panic to sink into his stomach._

" _Sora! Come on, jump!" Kairi called only for the boy to give her a small smile as the land started growing further apart, making a distance between the three of them._

" _Look after Kairi, okay?" cyan eyes widened in fear._

" _Why would I have to? Aren't you coming back with us?" particles of light began to appear, spreading outwards as the Destiny Islands reappeared around them._

" _Just… keep her safe, okay?" Kairi's eyes flooded with tears._

" _No! Come back with us! Sora!" the ground connecting them split apart, causing Riku to snag Kairi's shoulders to keep her from falling as the two of them tried to hold onto Sora's hand._

" _Kairi… listen!" aquamarine eyes looked up to him._

" _Please… don't leave!" a smile came to the boy's features._

" _I'm always with you, Kairi…" their hands were wrenched from one another, Kairi trying to reach for Sora's hand once more._

" _I'll come back to you! I promise!"_

" _ **Kairi! Hey, don't forget me… okay?"**_ the image of a boy's smiling face flashed within her mind as a gasp left her, and a now fifteen-year-old Kairi Misaki shot up from her bed.

Chapter 1: Scattered Memories

 **{Destiny Islands: January 7** **th** **, 2013, 7:54am}**

The sun was barely in the sky as the red-haired Princess of Heart put her hands over her face, taking in steady breaths as tears burned her eyes while she took a moment to regain her bearings. Aquamarine eyes looked to the window next to her bed as the girl reached forward, and pushed it open, the breeze off the ocean blowing her hair away from her face as she looked to the ocean and its darkened state. The sand was silver in the early morning hours, the plants and trees looking more like shadows and silhouettes instead of all the colors they normally had. The girl leaned against the windowsill, her eyes burning as her mind replayed events from just under a year ago. Since that day, things hadn't quite been the same for her or the others on the islands, resulting in her having to put up a front around the others while everyone else tried to continue with their lives, not mentioning a missing bright spot in their lives.

Kairi's eyes trailed to a picture frame lying on her bed. It was a picture, taken two weeks before the entire fiasco happened, of herself, Riku, and the one person who had vanished right before their eyes. What made him so special? She asked herself that often, and she always got the same answer: _what didn't make him special?_ From his comical personality, his warm heart, his bright smile, his messy dark brown hair, and his loud, and wonderful laughter, his energy, and his enthusiasm. Calling him a lazy bum, when she was no better, and most of all, his eyes. They looked a lot like the sky did now: clear, bright, and full of life. Kairi sighed as a breeze flew into her window and mussed her hair.

"I wish you'd come home… I miss you, Sora," she muttered as she curled up with her comforter.

Sora, was one of her dearest friends, someone that she had never thought she would have to live without; however, that had all changed almost a year ago. They had been swept away to other worlds, split up, and forced to face challenges and fears they never believed they would. At once though, they were back together, and then in a twisted series of events, she and Riku had been able to arrive back home, safe and sound, but Sora, their friend since they were toddlers, didn't return with them. Aquamarine eyes welled with tears as she thought of the last time she'd seen the brunette boy, his bright, beautiful sky-blue eyes shining, a calm smile upon his face as a glowing white-blue light appeared, taking him away from them. Kairi wiped her eyes, taking in a steady breath as she started to get up and ready for the day.

It was the same routine every day since they'd returned home, waking up just as the sun rose, having barely slept the night before, but trying to continue life the way she always had. Kairi took a steady breath as she brushed her hair in the mirror, brushing her bangs out of her face as she put concealer under her eyes to try and hide the dark circles present. Kairi never used make-up, but lately, she had been wearing it more and more in order to cover up her exhaustion, but Kairi would admit that it wasn't exactly working. A huff left her as she pulled on a pair of shorts, and a light-weight jacket, the early morning being cool, but not greatly so as she grabbed her wallet, house keys, and cellphone before heading out the door of her room and towards the stairs, traipsing down them quietly before she went out the front door, glancing towards her sandals left on the porch before she merely walked away, her bare feet touching down softly on the paved drive way as she walked down it and out towards the ocean, the breeze blowing her hair slightly as she stepped further along the way, the pavement giving way to the pale, soft sand of the Destiny Islands beaches as she started further towards the water, walking steadily, stepping into the water, letting it lap at her ankles as she took in a deep breath, looking out towards the play island as she stood amongst the rushing water, the sea feeling cool and strangely still despite the rushing of the waves.

"It's to calm…" a series of footsteps came behind her, and Kairi glanced slightly over her shoulder.

"Yea, dad said that this would be a fine day to go on the waters… the wind's strong despite the ocean being this still," Riku mentioned as Kairi looked to him.

He had changed more than she had in a year. His hair, that used to only reach the nape of his neck, now reached just past his shoulders, and was normally in a low ponytail or left to hang free. His bangs had been trimmed out of his eyes, and his attire had changed from what it had originally looked like. He now wore loose-fitting dark blue jeans, a black studded belt, a black tank top that zipped up, and an off-white and yellow trimmed vest that was always unzipped. His boots had been exchanged for sneakers that were black and white with yellow laces, and he always wore a white, long arm warmer on his right hand. Kairi smiled, as she knew Riku was the only one who understood her feelings and situation.

However, looking at Riku showed her how much time had passed since a year ago. She herself had been thinking about it earlier. She had changed from the sportier look from a year ago into something more suited for her age. She looked at her folded hands and sighed. Her attire consisting of a pair of pink shorts with zippers, a white v-neck t-shirt, and a belt with a pouch that had a pink ribbon tied around it; her pearl, tear drop necklace; a set of three bands: one white, one pink, and one sky blue. She looked different; they both did. The mere idea made her flinch.

"Hey… Riku?" the silver-haired teenager glanced to her.

"Something wrong Kairi?" the girl took in a deep breath.

"What do you think Sora looks like now?" she questioned.

"Hmm… he's probably a littler taller, his voice might have changed… but… he probably looks the same for the most part." Kairi nodded.

"You think so?" Riku reached forward, placing a hand on the girl.

"Kairi, Sora told us that he would come home, he made a promise… just like he promised you and I that he would help us get home safely… he did everything he could… even when I was being an idiot and let myself get pushed into a situation I only thought I had control over… and you know what? He succeeded, so we've gotta believe he'll return home one day soon," he told her as the girl took a moment to look at the three bracelets on her wrist.

"I want to see him again… every day he's not here… it feels like there's something missing in our lives." Riku smiled.

"Something told me you would say that… but… Kairi, we've gotta believe that he'll come home to us, just… give it time," he assured his longtime friend.

"How much longer should we wait? It's been almost a year… Sora should have come home by now… but he's… just…" her bottom lip trembled, tears filling her eyes as she let out a slight breath, tears slipping down her cheeks once more as Riku watched the girl.

While there had been a brief point in time, that Riku had found himself with a slight crush on the red-haired girl, he knew that Kairi had always had eyes for Sora. The brunette boy had been a great light for them both when they had fell into darkness, and even before then, had been the brightest spot in their days. Without him, it felt strangely empty, the islands having lost much of their vibrancy when that boy hadn't returned. Kairi had seemed to lose the warmth she carried just enough to be noticed by even those not touched by the Keyblade, and as for himself, he had begun to feel as though, one of his reasons for wanting to fight Ansem, had been forcefully pulled from him.

"Kairi… what if we searched for Sora ourselves?" he asked, causing the girl to look at him in confusion.

"Riku… are you serious? How can we – "he shook his head.

"I'm not sure, but we'll find a way. I promise… we'll get off the islands, and find Sora… we'll bring him back home," he promised.

"We've gotta figure out how to find him though… and right now we…"

" _Don't give up like that, okay Kairi?"_ the girl jolted, looking around the area as her heartrate picked up.

"Kairi?" Riku asked.

"I heard someone talking…" the silver-haired teenager rose an eyebrow.

"Huh? I didn't hear anything, you must have – "

" _Hey now, don't be like that… come on Riku…"_ the two teenagers looked to one another as they heard the voice speak.

"Who was that?" asked Riku as he looked around.

"That's a good question…" Kairi felt her tense body ease as she thought about the voice.

"I don't know that voice at all," Riku stated.

"Me, neither…"

 **{Hirigaya Household: 8:40pm}**

Riku sighed as he pushed the food around on his plate in silence, his mind thinking of the choice that he had made alongside Kairi that morning. Though the two of them weren't certain how they would manage it, both knew that waiting around for Sora to return would result in nothing changing or improving for either of them, nor the chance of them seeing their friend again. Sora meant the world to both of them, he was part of their lives, practically family in every sense of the word. They had been through many things together, and had endured multiple ups and downs that varied between one another and in order to help one another. Now, they had only one choice to return things to as close to how things used to be as possible.

"Riku? Is something wrong?" cyan eyes looked to the silver-haired woman across from him while they ate.

"I was… just thinking about something…" he muttered.

"About Kairi?" the teenager looked to the man at the front of their table.

"Dad, how many times do I have to tell you that I'm not interested in Kairi," Riku stated.

"She's a pretty girl, surely you've got some interest in her." Akira, Riku's mother shot his father a glare.

"Hiroki! Enough, its obvious that Riku isn't thinking about Kairi…" Riku sighed in relief.

"Then what are you thinking of?" the silver-haired teenager sighed.

"I was thinking about… Sora…" Hiroki sighed.

"Sora Seiren? Riku, listen… that boy isn't going to be found," he stated as Riku glowered.

"Yes, he will! Sora's fine, I know it!" Akira looked to Riku as Hiroki shook his head.

"Riku, listen, I know your clinging to that story you told all of us about some kind of battle all of you went through, and some sort of story about magic, and mouse Kings, and other things like that… but it's just a dream you had, so you need to let go of this fantasy you've created, and think about what you're doing," Hiroki said as Riku glared at his father.

"If you don't want to believe me, then that's fine! But I know that it's true… I didn't dream it! Neither did Kairi… we know what happened…" Akira looked to her husband.

"I believe that Sora's still alive, Riku. But, he's not going to come home any time soon." Riku glanced to his mother and he sighed.

"Then… Kairi and I are going to go look for him," he announced, startling both the adults.

"Go looking for him? Are you insane? You don't even know where to begin!" Riku took in a deep breath.

"We'll figure it out. Sora is our friend, and until something shows us that it's hopeless, we'll never give up on him… no matter how much it you think we should," he told his father as the man narrowed his eyes.

"Riku, you and Kairi will not be leaving the islands on some kind of ghost hunt!" the man slammed his hand down on the table, and Riku shot up, his chair falling over as he bowed his head.

"This isn't a ghost hunt… this is… to help someone I care for… Sora is my best friend… practically my brother… and I am not going to leave him behind! So, whether you like it or not, I am going to find Sora!" with that he walked away, startling his parents as the boy walked out the front door, slamming it behind him as he rushed down to the beach, choosing to take a walk to clear his head.

It wasn't typical of his father to be that way, as he had always viewed Sora as a second son; however, lately he believed that Riku and Kairi were obsessing over Sora's disappearance, and that they needed to realize that the boy was gone. Still, the behavior was strange, only because until recently, he had assured them that Sora would return, but now, it had all changed. Cyan eyes narrowed as he kicked at the sand beneath his feet, glowering sharply at it as though it was to blame for what was happening. The soon to be sixteen-year-old, started walking, letting the crash of the ocean's waves and the breeze ease his tensed form while he continued to walk.

Things had changed in the year since they'd returned to the Destiny Islands, and it had little to do with Sora's absence. People had started changing around the island, acting as though the storm that had been caused by him letting the darkness in, had never happened, and then people stopped mentioning Sora, and chose to try and move on, almost as though the brunette boy never existed. However, Himitsu, Sora's mother, never stopped talking about him or hope that he would return home. The silver-haired teenager blew his bangs out of his eyes, taking his time to walk across the beach, his mind wanting to forget all the insanity of the people who seemed to be willing to forget someone so special. Riku couldn't fathom why anyone, even Selphie, Tidus, and Wakka, wanted to stop talking about Sora, and move on.

" _How can you just move on… and… forget someone whose special to you."_

Riku looked up at the moon as he walked along the beach, his mind going blank as the moon hung overhead while a tired sigh left him. Lately, he hadn't been able to sleep that much. He had done all he could thus far to help Kairi, and himself, in waiting for Sora to come home, but waiting wasn't easing their worries. Riku had tried his hardest, to keep trying to get through the days, but nothing ever paid off, and he would try and tell Kairi that maybe it was time to stop, but he never could find it in his own heart to admit that Sora was truly gone. He couldn't imagine the brunette never returning, and while he tried to reason the situation out and be rational about it, he knew Sora could pull off some rather amazing things. Because of that, Riku knew Sora was out there somewhere, and that they had to find him.

 _"Sora, wherever you are, give us some help, okay? Kairi… really misses you….and I miss you, too... the Islands aren't as lively without you… and it just doesn't feel right without my best friend here…"_

A heavy sigh left him as a strong wind came off of the ocean and nearly knocked him over. Riku righted himself, before hearing a faint humming noise that he knew wasn't from the rocks around the island. Standing tense, Riku listened as the sound grew louder and louder, until another strong wave of wind flew out of nowhere and knocked him off his feet. Cyan eyes looked around in confusion, before landing on a colorful oval shaped ship that had parked on the beach. Riku jumped to his feet and prepared for a possible attack, when the hatch opened, and two figures stumbled out. He blinked momentarily in confusion as they got up, and he heard a surprisingly familiar voice.

"I thought I said to put it down gently?" asked a figure in blue.

"Gwarsh, sorry, I just…."

"Shush… we're being watched!" two sets of eyes landed on him, and instantly, a staff and a shield were drawn.

"Whoa! I come in peace!" Riku declared as he held his hands up. He knew this wasn't the time nor the place to fight, and he didn't feel up to seeing if he could still draw a Keyblade: he hadn't had to in a year, and he wasn't keen on putting a target on his back right then.

"Who are you?!" Riku stepped closer to them so he was standing in the light from the hatch of the ship, and the two figures became much clearer to him.

"I'm Riku! Riku Hirigaya!" he said as he kept his hands up.

"Riku? Wait… RIKU!" The two dropped their guard, and Riku finally got a look at them.

"Donald? Goofy? What are you two doing here?" he asked in confusion as the Court Magician and Captain of the Knights looked to him.

"King Mickey told us to come and get you, and Kairi." Cyan eyes widened.

"What?! Why are you supposed to get us?" Riku inquired, a knot of concern bubbling up in his chest.

"Gwarsh, we're supposed ta tell the two of ya once we're on tha Gummi Ship." The silver-haired teenager took in a deep breath as his eyes shifted towards Goofy.

"Okay… I'll get what I need, and go and get Kairi… we'll be back," he stated as Donald nodded.

"Hurry! It's important!" Riku nodded.

"Alright… I'll be back as fast as I can," he said as he took off, leaving Donald and Goofy behind as he rushed back to his house.

By the time Riku returned home, his lungs were burning, his legs shaking a bit as he pushed the front door open, and started to run up the stairwell, ignoring the questioning call of his parents as he went upstairs, and into his room, and grabbed a backpack, putting a long-sleeved shirt, and coat into it in case he required it before zipping it up as he pulled it onto his back and shut his cellphone off, putting it inside a drawer before he took in a deep breath, and turned around, starting out the door of his room, only to be stopped by his parents.

They stared at one another, just for a moment, and then Akira walked forward, pulling her son into her arms, placing a hand upon his head before looking to him with a firm nod as he smiled to her and started walking forward, his father placing a hand on his shoulder, not saying a word before Riku walked away, heading down the stairs, and towards the front door before he rushed out and into the night, heading down the street as fast as he could towards Kairi's house.

 **{…..}**

 _It started out as a feeling…_

 **{…..}**

 **Author's Note:** Welcome to the Final Mix edition of Kingdom Hearts: Cypher! I hope that this story is better in explanation, and that it's easier for you guys to follow. When I reread Cypher's original version, I ended up not liking it's flow very well, and decided to do this instead. Let me know if you guys like this or not, and leave a review!

Sincerely,

ShadowDragon94.


	2. Chapter 2: Find Your Way

Chapter 2: Finding Your Way

 **{Misaki Household: 9:30pm}**

"Kairi!" the red-haired girl sighed as she sat up on her bed and looked towards her open door.

"Yea dad?" she called back as she heard a series of footsteps.

"Riku's here!"

Kairi was on her feet rushing down the stairs as quickly as she could, seeing Riku present, looking out of breath with a backpack on his shoulders as his cyan eyes met hers while Kairi's father, Tadashi, took in the sight of the silver-haired teenager while a sinking feeling developed in the pit of Kairi's stomach. While she didn't initially think it was something terrible, there was also this ominous sense that hung around the other teenager, almost as if Riku had been made aware of something that she had yet to uncover. Amidst this, Kairi glanced to her father, knowing that he would be confused by the situation that could potentially arise from Riku's sudden arrival.

"Riku? What's wrong?" she asked.

"Donald and Goofy are here… they need us to come with them." Tadashi looked to Riku.

"Who?" he questioned.

"They're people who were with Sora last we saw them…" the man frowned.

"Then why would they be here?" Riku took in a deep breath.

"I think they're going to take us to Sora," he stated.

"What do I need to bring?" Riku eyed Kairi.

"Grab a backpack, put a long-sleeve shirt and a coat in there just in case you need warmer clothes. Wear a pair of jeans and closed toed shoes… they're waiting on us at the beach," he said.

Kairi nodded and rushed back upstairs, changing into a pair of jeans, flat soled ankle boots, a pink v-neck t-shirt, and then she grabbed her backpack, dumping the books out of it on her bed, before she reached into the bottom drawer of her dresser, grabbing a pink folded sweater she had, gloves, and her coat out of the closet which she folded and put into the backpack before zipping it up, and putting it on her back, rushing out the door of her room and down the stairs to meet Riku who nodded to her as her father looked at them.

"Kairi? Riku? If these two people are here to help you get Sora home… just promise me that the two of you will come back safe as well," Tadashi stated.

"We will. Don't worry…" he nodded.

"Alright, be careful… and the three of you come back safe," he said as he hugged the two children, and they waved before rushing out the door.

The two teenagers rushed as quickly as their legs would carry them, the hard pavement sending shocks up through the soles of their feet as they continued to run, their lungs starting to burn while their minds wondered what Donald and Goofy were truly doing here, at the Destiny Islands, instead of being with Sora, like they had last seen. The duo felt the pavement give way to the sand, the shifting grains making it harder to run as they went further along the beach, racing towards the Gummi Ship determined to receive answers for the situation at hand. As the two of them finally made it to the ship, Kairi looked to Donald and Goofy, remembering them from a year prior, feeling both relieved and confused by their presence while they also seemed nervous. The Princess of Heart took in a steady breath, heading towards them alongside Riku, both breathless and anxious as Donald and Goofy ushered them inside the ship without another word, and the hatch closed behind them.

"Kairi!" two voices said, and she looked to the two present.

"Donald! Goofy! It's so good to see you two! What are you two doing here? What's going on?" Riku cleared his throat.

"That's what I'd like to know. You came here and said that you two were sent by the King to get us, so, what's going on?" Riku asked as Kairi looked around the interior, noticing that the Gummi Ship was different from the one she'd ridden in on the way to Traverse Town. Donald and Goofy looked to the two of them as Kairi and Riku settled themselves down, the girl's nerves getting to her as she felt her hands tremble in anticipation before the two nodded, knowing that it was now time to begin their explanation.

"We're here, because the two of you have to help us," Donald stated.

"Help you? With what?" Goofy smiled.

"Getting to Sora," he announced as Riku and Kairi felt the worlds sink in.

"Wait… getting to… that means the three of you were separated…" the two nodded glumly.

"Unfortunately, we were… but after that, we've been searching non-stop," Donald stated as Kairi tensed.

"So… you found him?" Donald nodded.

"Yep! It took us almost a year, but after the King and several of our allies searching, we located him," he informed them of this and Goofy looked to the duo.

"And now we need yer help ta bring him home." Riku and Kairi took in a deep breath, sensing a detail of information that was missing.

"What do we need to do? Other than just coming with you to get Sora back?" Riku inquired with a suspicious expression.

"We need help opening gates and located the energy pulse that a Keyblade Bearer has… we can't sense it, but you can… not to mention, there's going to be Heartless." Riku and Kairi looked to the other two.

"Guys, the only problem is, that Kairi isn't a Keyblade wielder, and I haven't drawn my Keyblade in almost a year," Riku told them.

"But, accordin' to the King and Master Yen Sid, once someone's become chosen by the Keyblade, they always are a Keyblade wielder… ya don' just stop bein' one." Kairi glanced to Riku.

"Maybe if you focus, you can still summon it?" she suggested.

Riku tensed, swallowing around the lump in his throat as he held his hand out, closing his eyes, focusing closely upon the energy he had once felt thrum throughout his body when he'd drawn the Soul Eater Keyblade, his breath coming out in a steady rush as he clasped his hand into a fist, and in a glimmer of black-ish-white light, a Keyblade's weight fell into his grasp. Cyan eyes opened wide as he eyed the weapon. It was comprised of a draconic-looking wing of black and dark red, the grip was red and black with a blue, slit-pupil eye on it. The braces on both sides were opposite of one another: the left being a white angel wing, and the right a bluish-black bat wing, the teeth was a grayish-white angel wing, and the chain was dark gray with a black heart outlined in red.

"I… drew my Keyblade?" Kairi smiled.

"You did it!" Donald and Goofy nodded.

"Riku, can you please help us?" the silver-haired teenager took in a deep breath.

"If the Keyblade returned to me… I guess I have no choice," he stated.

"Then, what about you? Kairi?" the girl glanced down.

Kairi felt her body tremble internally. Here she was, on the cusp of finally finding Sora, getting to see him again, and getting him back, and yet, there was one thing standing in her way: a Keyblade. The same thing that had started this entire reality trip was the exactly same thing keeping her from Sora. The red-haired girl glanced towards Riku, thinking of the situation he had pulled himself back into. He knew what taking a Keyblade in his hand meant for his life, and as for Kairi, she was standing on the edge of choosing to potentially place herself in the way of harm. If they both got involved with the Keyblade, that meant they would no longer be able to stand on the sidelines, and that they would become Keyblade wielders just like Sora, and they would end up putting their lives on the line, whether they wanted to or not.

"What do I have to do?" Kairi asked.

"Are you sure you wanna do this?" Riku looked to Kairi.

"I am, too. Just tell us what's got to happen," she said. Donald nodded.

"Riku's the only Keyblade Bearer right now; however, Master Yen Sid, handed us a case, and he stated it was for Kairi… we're not sure what's in it though." Goofy picked up a black leather case, and sat it on the table in the center of the back of the Gummi Ship, and Kairi looked to it, standing before she reached forward, and opened the case, before looking inside it.

The braces on the top of the Keyblade were heart shaped, and one side looked like the sand back home, that curled into a vine down the entire base of the key, the other side of the brace went from sand to a wave from the ocean in blue. Her eyes landed on the base of the key that looked like driftwood, and bled into the teeth which were made of colorful wildflowers, and vines with green leaves. She smiled as she looked at the dark gray grip, and then the Keychain itself, which was red rope, like the one she had used on her lucky charm and a paopu fruit at the end. Carefully, Kairi picked it up out of the case, the warmth around the Keyblade making any of her anxiety almost fade away as the others looked to it.

"Release the Keyblade and it'll vanish… then return to you, when you need it." Kairi felt the warmth of someone's breath on her ear and shivered a bit as she followed the instructions and the weapon vanished in a flourish of pink light.

"Are the two of you ready to go and get Sora?" asked Donald as the two Keyblade Bearers look at one another, nodding before Goofy went up to the front with the Court Magician.

"Yea, let's go bring him home." The duck walked forward, and got into the pilot's seat.

"Then buckle up, the next stop is a world known as St. Petersburg," he said as the two looked at Goofy.

"Did you bring warm clothes?" the two nodded.

"We did," Kairi stated.

"You'll need it, it's purdy cold in that world." Kairi and Riku glanced to their backpacks, knowing they would need to change at some point.

"There's a room in the back you can change in when you need to. I'll tell you when we're almost there," Donald told them.

"Okay, let's go!" with that Donald started up the Gummi Ship, and not a moment later, the four of them were off into the darkened skies above.

 **(Unknown Area: 10:09pm}**

A man in a black cloak stood in a room, observing several different scenes quietly, his dark orange-amber eyes looking at a feed of video as he hummed, thinking carefully about the situation at hand. A door opened behind him, and he continued watching, playing back video feeds from nearly a year prior in addition to newer information from within a place known as Castle Oblivion. The person behind the man took in a deep breath, sighing as he looked at the images, finding the situation interesting, but somewhat boring as the white-haired man continued to watch the feed.

"Seems like you're preoccupied, Xemnas," stated the person.

"Xigbar, remind me… you were from the fallen kingdom, correct?" the other laughed.

"Yea, I was… went to the academy and everything…" Xemnas took a moment to assess the information.

"And… you were rivals with a lower classman?" he inquired.

"Oh? That c _heeky brat?_ Yea, he was a first year… I was in my third year, and he had just come in… we didn't exactly get along." The leader of Organization Thirteen hummed.

"Where did he hail from?" the Nobody asked as Xigbar thought for a minute.

"He was a stray from Midnight Town… Gypsy trash." Xemnas narrowed his gaze slightly.

"That boy was a Gypsy?" he inquired.

"Yea, showed in his temperament too… he was a real spitfire." Xemnas paused an image in front of him.

"Does this person look familiar?" he asked. Xigbar eyed the picture in front of him, his single eye widening, confused and shocked when he saw the person presented to him.

"He shouldn't be alive… according to the information I was able to find… he died ten years ago… not to mention… he looks to young…" Xemnas looked to him.

"That's because, this person… is the newest thorn in our side… the Keyblade Bearer… the wielder of the Silver Kingdom Key," he stated as Xigbar laughed a bit.

"So… that means… he has a child…." Xemnas nodded briefly.

"Indeed, it does… and if that boy and girl were engaged in such a manner… there's more than a singular issue that would have been produced." Xigbar smirked.

"Maybe we should try and find the other one then," he suggested.

"Then… perhaps we should let him, and the guardian know that we are well aware of the truth…" Xigbar hummed in thought, eyeing the image presented on the screen.

"Let's wait and see… they favor… but the boy doesn't quite fit his appearance fully," he stated as Xemnas nodded slightly.

"Correct, there is no need for us to rush into these events."

 **{Destiny Islands: 11:22pm}**

Himitsu Seiren took in a heavy breath as she washed a few dishes, taking in the silence of the big house. After Riku and Kairi had returned, Himitsu had hoped her son would be with them; however, Kairi had come to her, crying and telling her that Sora hadn't come home with them, and promised to return soon. It had been a sobering thing to hear, but Himitsu was going to keep her hope in her son returning safely to her one day soon. The black-haired woman bit her lip, tears burning her eyes as she shook her head, choosing to not cry anymore over the situation, for it would do nothing for her. As she dried her hands, a knock at the door came, and she walked over to it, opening the door to see Akira and Tadashi standing there before her.

"Akira? Tadashi? What's wrong?" she asked.

"Riku and Kairi are gone." Himitsu felt her eyes widen.

"What do you mean they're gone?" she questioned as she let the two in.

"They said two people named Donald and Goofy came to get them…" Himitsu clutched the book-shaped locket around her neck.

"Their going to get Sora," she stated.

"Himitsu, how can you be sure? Think about it…" the woman shook her head.

"No, I know it's what they're going to do… believe me… please," she pleaded as she looked at the two adults.

While Akira and Tadashi weren't exactly certain how, Himitsu had always been able to tell when certain events were going to take place. She had a sixth sense that for some reason, made her aware of when tragedies, and other situations would arise. Taking a deep breath, Akira looked to her longtime friend, knowing that the time for certain things had finally started to come to light. She reached forward, hugging her friend as Tadashi looked down, understanding coming to him as well while the two women hugged. All his life, Tadashi had been trying deeply to understand where his wife had been coming from in telling him that their daughter was meant for great things, and then her capabilities to understand Himitsu's situation on a deeper level as well.

"You know, my wife used to tell me that Kairi was meant for great things… and I never quite understood what she meant… now I'm starting to realize why she always said those things," Tadashi stated.

"Hiroki didn't want Riku to go… but I think… he understood once Riku came back home and packed up a few things into his backpack that he was going to leave whether we wanted him to or not…" Himitsu smiled a bit, wiping her eyes as Tadashi and Akira looked to her.

"Sora's father was the same way. Never wanted him to get involved in dangerous things… he wanted Sora to be normal… to live a life that was peaceful… unlike his own… but he also knew that Sora wouldn't always remain that way… he understood that things were going to happen, and that his son would do something more with his life than remain on these islands…" the three adults remained silent for a moment.

"We'll just have to trust our children to return home safely," Akira stated.

"But they're just children…" Himitsu shook her head.

"No, they're our children… and that's why we have to believe in them," she said as she took the other twos hands, a smile upon her face as their worries were eased a bit.

"If they're not home soon… we should start searching for them." Akira and Himitsu agreed.

"Alright, but don't worry… they'll be okay," Himitsu told Tadashi as she looked into his dark gray eyes.

"I'll believe you… and just hope you're right."

 **{…}**

 _Which then grew into a hope…_

 **{…}**

 **Author's Note:** Whew, this chapter is just set ups for everything that follows it, which is why it's pretty short; however, we've gotta remember that a lot of things have been changed and extended in the Final Mix edition of this story, but don't worry, this is mostly just a chill out story before we start getting into the serious stuff. Let me know what you guys think, and please leave a review!

Sincerely,

ShadowDragon94.


	3. Chapter 3: Sensations

Chapter 3: Sensations

Riku sighed as he watched Kairi lying down on one of the seats, sleeping rather peacefully as they continued to fly through the other sky, looking around at the different worlds as he continued to ponder the situation at hand. He hadn't quite figured out why he had been asked to help retrieve Sora, especially after what he'd done. Letting in the Darkness that destroyed their homeworld, becoming jealous over the fact that Kairi's heart had chosen to hide within Sora, instead of coming to him, and that had come from the fact that while he had a crush on the girl, Kairi had only ever had eyes for Sora when it came to romantic feelings.

Those mixed emotions, of being jealous of the brunette boy, and desiring to protect him and Kairi with the false pretense of power he had once thought he controlled, caused him to be possessed by Ansem, the Seeker of Darkness, and nearly kill Sora. The only time he'd been redeemable, had been when he'd put himself in harms way to protect Kairi, after Sora had chosen to practically commit suicide, to give the red-haired girl her heart back. All of Sora's actions, had been nothing but good intentions, love, and consideration for not only his friends and family, but for strangers as well.

"Riku? Are you okay?" asked Goofy.

"Hmm? Oh, I'm fine… just thinking." Donald glanced his way.

"About what?" he questioned.

"Why did King Mickey want me to go with you guys to rescue Sora?" the two eyed him.

"Because, you're a Keyblade Bearer, and your Sora's friend," Goofy stated.

"I doubt Sora thinks of me as a friend after what I did…" Donald sighed.

"When we get him back, you can talk it over with him once we get him out of this world," he stated.

"What do you know about St. Petersburg anyways?" Goofy handed him a small journal, and Riku opened it, looking through the information of the world as the Gummi Ship fell into silence once more.

Leaned back in the chair, soundly asleep, Kairi dreamed of a dark void, lacking noise of all kind, causing a chill to slither up her spine as she stood there, looking around. The red-haired girl walked forward, calling out to see if anyone answered her, all the while, she hoped to find Riku or someone she recognized. The Princess of Heart walked, almost constantly, to the point that she felt her breathing become labored, and her legs started to ache as she finally stopped, and settled herself down upon the ground, pulling her knees up to her chest as she rested her head upon them.

Kairi wasn't sure where she was, or why she had ended up in this place, but she was certain that someone was trying to tell her something. The girl took in a steady breath, closing her eyes tightly, hoping to block out the darkness that surrounded her as she felt tears prick her eyes, as she sat there in the nothingness, enduring the unending void and silence. Kairi realized, as she sat there, that she was entirely alone, and that no one was going to save her. Tears slipped down her cheeks, small sobs coming from her as she felt her form tremble, the noise of her own heart pounding and her half-silent crying drowning out the sound of footsteps.

A voice spoke to her, alerting her as she looked up at the source of it. The voice was gentle, smooth, young, and most certainly belonging to a boy. Aquamarine eyes glanced towards the person, seeing messy chestnut hair that fell into the person's eyes, and lightly tanned skin. She stared, as he crouched next to her and she leaned away as the person watched her, speaking to her about something that she found confusing.

Kairi had informed him that she was confused as to why she was in this strange place, and he only smiled in a manner that reminded her of someone she knew, but not quite as he informed her that she needed to be set upon the right track, and that she also could have forgotten what her reason for why she was looking for someone. Kairi quickly stood, informing him otherwise, and the boy smiled, standing as he looked at her, even though she couldn't see his eyes as he reached out to her, holding a hand with slender, long fingers, and scars upon the wrist for her to take as she questioned who he was aloud.

" _You don't remember my name? Thanks a lot, Kairi! But I guess I could give you a hint… starts with an S…"_

A sudden jolt woke Kairi from her sleep, eyes looking around as Riku tensed nearby her while she grabbed hold of her seat's armrests. The Gummi Ship started to vibrate horribly, Donald and Goofy looking around frantically as Riku watched the chaos unfold while Kairi peered out the window at the forest full of snow, finding herself thankful that she had changed into a sweater, and had her coat with her as Riku came to her side, the duo looking around, seeing nothing but vast snow, and a sprawling old city in the distance.

"What's going on?" asked Kairi as Riku tensed.

"We had some flying Heartless attack us, they took out one of the side engines, and we're gonna land." Kairi looked around them.

"I'm gonna have us land in a snowbank, everyone hold on!"

Riku and Kairi grabbed onto the nearest objects, buckling themselves in as Donald steered them into a snowbank in the forest, their forms going tense as everyone braced for impact. Kairi and Riku had seen snow a few times, and knew it could be used as a cushion, so long as it hadn't turned into solid ice, which would make for a less than pleasant experience. The two Keyblade Bearers closed their eyes tightly, as the ship shook in a massively violent manner before there was a sudden grinding sound of metal and wood as tree limbs went flying, grating against the hull before the Gummi Ship finally stopped. All four people within the ship felt their bodies become almost liquid-like as they took in a series of deep breaths, entire forms trembling as they realized that they were fine.

The two Keyblade Bearers glanced to one another, unbuckling their seatbelts as they slipped out of them, and into the floor while Donald and Goofy did the same. The four of them started to check one another quickly for any injuries, and once they were certain that everyone was safe, they got their coats on, and walked out of the ship, and into snowy world around them. It was a quiet place, where nothing much surrounded the four people, save for trails of snow and deep forests.

"So, is this St. Petersburg?" Kairi asked.

"Yes, it's a pretty cold world. Always snowing, and it's currently ruled by the Romanov Family. They're pretty good rulers from what I understand, and they have several young children. They live in the Royal Palace in the city north of us, that's where we'll be going once we get Sora." Riku frowned a bit.

"There's something you guys aren't telling us, isn't there?" he inquired as Donald and Goofy glanced down.

"Well…" Kairi looked to them.

"Why would Sora be in this world?" she questioned.

"Awhw…" Riku narrowed his eyes.

"We didn't tell you everything…" the silver-haired teenager growled a bit, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Nothing surprises me anymore," he stated.

"Donald… Goofy… what did you not tell us?" Donald looked down.

"We… got separated from Sora, in a place called Castle Oblivion… and Sora started to… change… his memories weren't there… he didn't really recall certain things… and by the time it was over, he didn't even remember who he was… we knew we needed to get him to someone who could help him… and we found the exit… but… when we turned to make sure he was still behind us…" Donald made a sorrowful sound, causing the expressions of the two to become ones of horror.

"This man in a red mask grabbed him from behind… and put a spell on him! Sora fell asleep, and the man picked him up, and ran away… we haven't seen him since!" Kairi felt tears well in her eyes as Riku felt a pulse of anger course through him.

Riku and Kairi had maintained some peace of mind, knowing that Sora was safe with Donald and Goofy. However, the truth that the three of them had entered into some sort of castle that had done something to their friend, and caused him to forget everything he'd endured and experienced in the past, to the point that he'd even forgotten his own name, was something that neither of them had wanted to hear. The thing that terrified them most of all though, was the fact that Sora had been split up from them not because they'd chosen to go their separate ways, or gotten lost trying to meet back up, but because someone had taken Sora away, right before their eyes.

Kairi felt a knot form in her chest, a lump appearing within her throat as tears welled into her eyes. What had that man wanted with Sora? Why did he take him? What was this going to do to all of them? And most importantly, what had he done to Sora in this last year? Hundreds of scenarios and questions flooded her mind, fear and sorrow ripping at her insides as Riku remained unnaturally still beside her the entire time. Cyan colored eyes turned a hard glare upon the Court Magician and Captain of the Knights as he noticed Kairi's current state, trembling in a manner that had nothing to do with the cold, as anger boiled in his veins.

"So… you're telling us that… you three didn't get split up…" Riku's voice became unnaturally cold and biting as Donald and Goofy looked at him.

"Riku, we didn't know this was goin' to happen," Goofy stated.

"Sora lost all of his memories… he couldn't even remember who he was… and you just…" Kairi glanced to Riku as he trembled.

"We didn't know that someone would try and – "Riku could take no more.

"THAT DOESN'T MATTER! SORA NEEDED THE TWO OF YOU TO WATCH HIS BACK! HE TRUSTED THE TWO OF YOU TO HELP HIM! _HELL! I TRUSTED THE TWO OF YOU TO KEEP HIM SAFE! HE'S LIKE A BROTHER TO ME!_ HOW THE HELL SHOULD I REACT TO HEARING THAT MY LITTLE BROTHER WAS KIDNAPPED BY SOME PSYCHOPATH IN A MASK?!" the silver-haired teenager took in a deep series of breaths, his body shaking violently as Donald and Goofy looked down in shame while Kairi felt her tears fall down her cheeks, causing her face to feel even colder than it already did.

"Riku… listen… we… "he shook his head.

"Sora… he's family to me and Kairi… we've always been together since we were little kids. We trusted the two of you to keep him safe… even though we knew he was in a dangerous situation… but… dammit… we thought that you would at least keep him from getting abducted by one of the nut-jobs that want the power of the damn Keyblade!" Riku snapped sharply.

"We've been looking for him since we got out of the castle! All of us have been searching for him everywhere! Even the King has been looking and – "the silver-haired teen ground his teeth together.

"Fuck that! Who knows what that man did to him in a year! He could have altered his memories! He could have made him join the Darkness, experimented on him, or who knows what else!" he snarled as he kept a heated glare on the two.

"Riku, please… they've been trying…" cyan eyes looked to Kairi.

"They shouldn't have walked ahead of him! They should have kept him right by their sides!" he stated.

"I get that you're angry… and I am too, but… we… need to work together, and stay focused if we want to bring Sora home." Riku took in a deep breath as Kairi placed a hand to his shoulder.

"I know… it just… the idea alone that someone who's as kind hearted and innocent as Sora is in the hands of someone who might do who knows what to him… it worries me…" Kairi nodded.

"Yea, I get it. It scares me too, but the sooner we find him, the sooner we can find a way to help him," she stated.

"Okay… your right… let's start searching."

 **{Laboratory Area: 10:02am}**

The resounding clack of keys being pressed echoed off and on between the almost silent hum of machinery as a man stood before a computer screen within a pristine white laboratory. His attire was red and black with brown leather accents, favoring an ancient robe of some kind. His face was covered in red strips of cloth with black straps holding them in place, leaving only a single eye, and his mouth visible as he checked the information the machines had been taking in for that day. A hum left him as he glanced to another monitor that displayed people exploring the forest near his laboratory while he continued to check through the data.

" _His vitals are perfect as usual… I wouldn't have expected any less from him though…"_

A singular orange eye glanced up towards the lotus pod in front of him, a watchful eye glancing the form of a sleeping soon to be sixteen-year-old Sora. The boy had been with him for around a year, and he had been able to gather a great deal of information and also accomplish what he needed to when it came to the boy. Thankfully, under his guidance, the boy's memories had slowly but surely returned, until at long last, they were fully restored. However, the masked man knew that his time to study the boy, and accomplish what he needed to with Sora, was coming to an end. Without question, the four people present, were here to bring Sora home with them, and he truly had no intention of stopping them, but he did have his doubts.

"It seems your loyal companions have come to deliver you from me. Should they be whom they claim to be, then they may take you away… however, I fear that… if you were to leave, somethings we have been attempting to withhold… may come to fruition…" he stated as he eyed the boy, who slept, dressed in simple black clothes, remaining barefoot as he floated within the substance inside the pod before glancing towards the monitors once more.

" _Kairi! Riku!"_ a singular orange eye looked towards the boy, disbelief readable in his expression.

Sora had said nothing since the he'd been placed under the sleeping spell a year ago, and now, out of the blue, the sound of the boy calling for his friends mentally, had resounded within his mind as well. The masked man eyed him, seeing a faint twitch in the boy's fingers as he frowned, knowing that Sora was startling to awaken. The man looked back to the monitors as the four-people kept moving, searching for any signs of a building or entrance in the ground as he took in a deep breath.

"So… it appears that fate has chosen the path we are to take… but I will still test their candor and valor…"

 **{Hilltop: 11:07am}**

Riku looked around the area they were in via a high hill, and frowned as he saw nothing but snowy hills and gray skies for miles. He sighed as he slid back down the hill to where Kairi, Donald, and Goofy were waiting. Earlier on in their investigation of the area, the silver-haired teen had felt himself become concerned that they had ended up being deceived by the information that Donald and Goofy had collected, but as soon as they had gotten further out and began to look for any clues, he had felt a faint spike of strange energy run through his heart, almost as if something was reaching out for it's attention.

The moment that sudden jolt of energy that had spooked the boy, had faded a bit, Riku had gotten the distinct feeling, that it was Sora, and he quickly learned that Kairi, had also felt what he had. The girl was currently standing next to Donald with a thoughtful expression as she tried to think of why they had felt such a strange spike of energy between them. Riku and Kairi had already summed it up that Sora was seeking them out in some strange manner, and that had been more than enough to convince them that they were in the right world.

"How does it look?" Kairi asked.

"Lots of snowy hills and trees… not much else other than that." the Donald frowned.

"How are we supposed to find him if he's in a world like this?" he inquired.

"I don't know…" Kairi hummed.

"Kairi? What are you thinking?" Riku inquired.

"What if we try to reach out to what we felt earlier?" Donald and Goofy looked at one another.

"How do you know that it's even Sora?" asked Donald.

"I just feel it… I know it's him. I don't know why or how… but there's no doubt in my mind that it's Sora..." the two sighed as Riku nodded.

"I believe you, Kairi. I just don't know what to tell you…" Riku felt guilty for saying that, when he had promised her that they'd find Sora and bring him home; however, he was beginning to think they'd only find him when he wanted to be found.

"Maybe we should see if the scanner in the Gummi…."

A sudden crackle of static filled their ears as the world around them swiftly shot from white to black, as the ground beneath them caved, and they plummeted beneath the surface. Kairi felt her heart leap into her throat, as she found herself frantic as the four of them freefell. The whistle of wind around them told Riku that they had a long fall ahead of them, unless they could stop it. He glanced over his shoulder and saw a moderate-sized circle of white that he was certain was an exit, but still quite a bit of a fall. Taking the chance, Riku glanced to them and summoned his Keyblade. The others looked to him as if catching his idea as Goofy summoned his shield, and Kairi drew her own Keyblade as Donald brought his staff out and hoisted it up with a quick word. A bubble formed around them, and soon they felt and saw the flash of brilliant white as the tunnel gave way to the exit, and they bounced as they hit the hard marble floor.

Riku felt his body roll sideways as the bubble burst and they were scattered about the room. Donald landed flatly on his back, Goofy was flung into the nearest wall, and Kairi flipped over as she landed, seated upright, but faintly in shock as the room around them seemed to cut a flip. Riku's grip upon Way to the Dawn tightened as he took note of their surroundings. The room they were in was a blinding white, and lined in blacked-out windows with not even a trace of a camera. Kairi stood and shook herself out as she kept her hold on Destiny's Embrace as she looked to Riku, who nodded to assure her he was fine, as Donald and Goofy made their way back to them. Now clustered together, the four of them tried to see if an exit was visible from their standing point at the center of the room.

Nothing appeared visibly present for a way out, but they all knew that it didn't mean there wasn't one. Riku moved to the left side of the room, while Kairi moved forward, Goofy went across from Riku in order to check the wall, as Donald went behind Kairi to do the same. They began feeling along the wall for cracks and air, as their focus was taken from finding Sora to escaping so that they could return to their first mission. Kairi bit her lip as her hand glided across the wall she stood at, before she felt a faint gust of air. Aquamarine eyes focused on the tiny black line where another faint puff of warm air was felt, before she took both her hands and pushed against it. There was a loud click, and the others turned to her direction as she stepped back, and the door cranked itself open with the grinding sound of large gears. The hallway before them was dark, illuminated by a dull series of flickering lights and hanging wires as they gathered back up and looked around the hall as they tried to sum up whether walking into it would be safe or not.

"Welcome to my laboratory." A voice behind them caused the four to turn instantly with their weaponry prepared for an attack.

Standing before them was a see-through projection of some kind that formed the appearance of a man in a dark red cloak, with accents of black and gold underneath and around the cuffs and waist. His face was covered by a red bandage, fastened to him with thick, black belts. His only visible features were his mouth, straight-lined and humorless, and his orange-amber colored eye, which was observant and slightly cold as he looked them over. Riku kept his eyes trained on the man as Kairi fixed her grip on Destiny's Embrace. The two of them hadn't the faintest clue as to who this man was, but neither of them liked the way he appeared, nor how they had been informed that they were now inside a laboratory, where they, honestly, would have been happier in the cold outside.

"Who are you?" asked Kairi.

"I am DiZ, and this is my establishment. I was about to ask who my intruders are, but I know now that there is no need for introductions." Riku's cyan eyes narrowed.

"And why is that?" he questioned.

"Naturally, I know who the four of you are, and without a great deal of trouble or effort either." Donald looked him over and his eyes grew wide.

"You're the man that kidnapped Sora!" he exclaimed in fury. The man's cool eye looked him over.

"I did not kidnap that boy." Riku's grip tightened on his Keyblade to the point that his knuckles turned white.

"You better explain yourself then! Otherwise, when I find you, I'm going to gut you!" he snapped.

"No need for extremes… as I said, I know why you are here." The four glowered.

"You say you know us…. but you haven't said our names," she stated.

"Wise of you, Princess Kairi Misaki….and bold of you as well, Riku Hirigaya. It is also a pleasure to meet you, leader of the Knights of King Mickey Mouse's court, Goofy Goof, and the court Magician of King Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck." The four of them felt their bodies tense. How had he known who they were to that detail?

"How…" The man smirked.

"I know, because Sora knows you all so well," he stated.

"Sora? Where is he?!" the cloaked man smiled again.

"Somewhere within this laboratory. I have a proposition for you, and if you accept, then I will tell you the next steps to getting Sora back…." He said as he moved a bit to the left.

"What's the proposition?" he smiled to them.

"It's rather simple: there are three zones in this laboratory, and you just need to get through them in order to get to Sora, who is at the center of the laboratory. It goes in circles, with one exit, and an entrance on the opposite side. I have a map, and you are free to look at it, but, finding your way out of the maze isn't the only issue," he said calmly.

"Let me guess, Heartless?" an orange-amber eye looked Riku over.

"You should be a scholar, and leave the battles to Sora Seiren instead, Riku Hirigaya," the masked man informed him with a tone of humor.

"I'm more interested in fighting alongside my friends!" the other hummed.

"Very well, you have until daybreak tomorrow to find Sora. If you find him by then, you may leave, but if you do not… Sora will remain here with me until he is needed elsewhere," he stated in a lax tone that set their teeth on edge.

"Daybreak tomorrow…. okay… we accept." The masked man waved his hand to the left and brought up a large map.

"You have fifteen minutes to examine the map. After that, it will disappear, and you will have to find your way through my maze, and deal with the wonderful Heartless I've set loose while trying to get to Sora in time," he said.

"That's it? No rules?" asked Kairi.

"Oh, there are: you cannot break down the walls, for instance, or cut the wires to keep me from watching you. Other than that, you are allowed to use any means necessary to accomplish your goal."

"Alright then, we'll get Sora and get out of here," stated Riku as he stepped towards the map, and the others followed.

"May the odds be ever in your favor." With that, the man's projection vanished.

 **{….}**

 _Which then turned into a quiet thought…_

 **{….}**

 **Author's Note:** Things are going to follow the original story a bit from here; however, there are a few differences here and there. I'm hoping to keep the feel of the original story, just giving more details and changing a few things around. Like the fact that in the original story, there was no identification of this world, but here, it's St. Petersburg, from the movie Anastasia, in the time before the events that showed during the beginning of the movie began. So, Princess Anastasia, would be around… seven in this story. We'll be seeing this world again, much later.


	4. Chapter 4: Cypher

Chapter 4: Cypher

 **{Time: 10 Hours 'Til Deadline}**

"Challenge fucking accepted, you old mummy!" Riku snarled as he looked the map over.

It wasn't remarkably multifarious, but it would be tricky to get to the center of the complex. By his count, they had ten hours, tops, to find Sora, and from where they were – which was conveniently pointed out to them by a blue dot on the map – and where the center of the laboratory was, they would just barely make it. However, Riku had yet to factor in the Heartless, and what kinds were in the lab's corridors. He had dealt with fighting heartless before, and he was more than capable of fighting. Donald and Goofy were capable as well from what he had seen during the previous year, but that did make him worry about Kairi.

While Riku, Donald, and Goofy were what he would described as fairly seasoned fighters, Kairi wasn't. His mind tried to process what she could do with her Keyblade, and hoped she was a natural like Sora had been. He looked the map over a few more times before glancing in the others direction. If it had been Kairi that needed saving and not Sora, then Riku could have easily counted him and Sora as having more than enough time, only because of how fast he knew they could work together. He sighed as he shook his head in knowing that Kairi could handle herself, and now wasn't the time to doubt her.

 _"That's right, Riku, don't doubt her."_ Riku glanced around as he heard the voice, and then pushed it from his mind as he looked at the map once more before it vanished.

"Riku?" cyan eyes glanced towards aquamarine ones, and the silver-haired teen nodded.

"We'll get this whole mess done, and return home soon," he assured her as she nodded.

"Yea… alright… do you know the way?" Riku nodded.

"Don't worry about it… I've got the map in my head… but what I'm worried about, is the Heartless," he stated.

"Agreed, we don't know how many could be here," Donald stated as they stepped into the corridor.

"Is there any way to tell when they're coming?" Donald made a noise at Kairi's question.

"The smell of burnt rubber would be a good indicator," he said as they turned right.

"Burnt rubber?" Riku nodded.

"Yea, it's a pretty strong stench, so it's hard to miss. We need to stay alert, and keep focused: _we have ten hours until the timer runs out_ ," he said as they walked further down the hallway.

All of them, at present, had mixed emotions about this challenge they had been given by DiZ. Finding Sora could be like finding a needle in a haystack sometimes, and that was without him having been kidnapped and held hostage for a year. Since they were very young, Sora had been the one best known for being impossible to be found if he didn't wish to be, and knowing that made Riku and Kairi a little anxious. If Sora was awake, and didn't have much, if any, memory, then he could wander off and never be found, possibly. Kairi felt her stomach knot up at that. The mere idea of it sounded too far-fetched, but she knew saying that it was impossible would be a bit thick of her at this point, when she was already well aware that the word impossible clearly was a figment of the imagination.

Donald and Goofy walked behind Riku and Kairi as the silver-haired teen lead them through the maze of a laboratory. A large chunk of them felt guilty for this entire ordeal, and while King Mickey had stated that these events couldn't be avoided, they still felt the blame for it weighing on them. Sora was thirteen, still a very young child that was their responsibility to safeguard, and what had happened since they found him? He had been attacked by Heartless, thrashed around by his own friend, he had lost that same friend nearly twice, and he had been dragged around worlds, put into mortal peril, fought against a God of the Underworld, thrown headlong into a very old war, attacked by Ansem, forced to battle his own friend, and then what? He sacrificed himself for Kairi, and became a Heartless.

Thankfully, Sora was returned to normal, but that was opposite of their guilt right then. Their biggest blunder since the boy had joined them had been within Castle Oblivion, when they were attacked by Organization Thirteen, and then swiftly forced through a series of events. Once they were out of the supposed perils, they had intended on leaving and going to see the King in hopes of finding new information on what he had wanted when they had lost sight of Pluto, but that had been when they had turned to see DiZ putting Sora under a spell, and into a deep sleep before picking the unconscious boy up into his arms and vanishing into darkness. It had all happened so fast that Donald and Goofy had no time to react. That had been the worst moment thus far, and there could have been many more if Sora hadn't been able to work such odd little miracles of overcoming the nearly impossible.

 _"Sora trusted the two of you to watch his back! Hell! I trusted you to keep him safe!"_ The two felt miserable in hearing those words, and they wouldn't soon forget them, but for now, they had more pressing matters than what happened a year ago, and they were determined to do their jobs properly. Just as the thoughts crossed their minds, a rumbling noise echoed throughout the hallway.

"Guys! We've got Heartless inbound!" Riku alerted them, drawing his Keyblade in a flourish of black-white light as Kairi took in a deep breath, and summoned her own Keyblade as the stench of burnt rubber flooded the area before a swarm of black, little shadows flew into the corridor they were in.

"That's a swarm! Not just a few!" said Donald as he summoned his staff.

Kairi raised her Keyblade up and swung, taking out a few of them as she drove into them with determination. Riku jumped into the fray alongside her, and soon the rumble of thunder tore through the area, as did flashes of lightning, as Donald set to work on using his magic, and Goofy began batting the creatures back with his shield. With the four of them working together, they could possibly get through the hoard in the time they were given, but if there were ten more halls between them and Sora, and it took them an hour each, they didn't have a prayer.

"Don't let them swarm you! Stay on your toes!" Riku yelled to Kairi as she took out a few more Heartless.

"Thank God, she's not bad at this."

"RIKU!"

The silver-haired teen turned on his heels and managed to cut the one Heartless in half as it flew towards him. His mind reeled at this sight: they had wings now? Did they evolve? Shaking the thoughts from his mind, Riku smashed Way to the Dawn upon a few of the Heartless' heads as they vanished into smoke, before he moved towards Kairi, who was doing her best to slash through the creatures as they moved further down the hallway, with Donald and Goofy backing them. Thankfully, the amount there wasn't as large as it had looked at first. However, once they were out of the first hallway, there were several more to go through. The door creaked open with the same churning noise of gears, and the lights above sparked as the scent of burning rubber filled their noses instantly.

"Out of the frying pan..." muttered Donald as more Heartless turned a corner.

"…and into the fire." With that, the four of them jumped into the next drove of Heartless.

 **{Surveillance Room: 9 hours remaining}**

A hum of thought left DiZ as he monitored the progress of the four, tucked safely away in his observation room while he witnessed the situations unfurling while the rescue part went head-to-head with the secondary wave of Heartless. Without much difficulty, DiZ knew that the group would succeed, which only caused a faint smile to come to his features. The main reason behind their current success, laid with Riku Hirigaya, who was almost as good of a leader as Sora Seiren was – though they could both use some more experience – however, with the rate of their movement, the process that DiZ had begun, wouldn't be completed. A single orange eye looked at the image of the boy on the screen, his form retaining a slight pale blue glow to it as DiZ watched the percentage on a screen to his left slowly raise. The man sighed, sitting in his chair as Kairi tore through a series of larger heartless as he contemplated on whether or not he was going to attempt holding them back or not. A heavy frown appeared upon his features, exhaustion creeping upon him as he shook his head in defeat: sometimes he was far to kind of a man.

"They all the same are making great progress… is that not true? King Mickey?" DiZ asked as he turned his chair around to face the mouse King as he stepped forward from the shadow nearby.

"DiZ… what have you done?" the man sighed in defeat.

"I did what must be done. Sora is far to important to risk… it is vital he and the other succeed in reuniting. And in order to assist that, his memories must be returned… or have you forgotten whose child he is?" DiZ stated as King Mickey glowered.

"I know all of those things, but it doesn't change the fact that what you did, is wrong!" the man looked him over.

"Mickey… Sora needed to recover his memories… they would not have returned on their own… without those vital details of his past, the future Sora will need to strive towards, may have been viewed as pointless to him… and losing him and the other to the bitter darkness of Xehanort's schemes… will not benefit anyone," DiZ told him as King Mickey took in a deep breath.

"Yes, I'm aware of that DiZ! But think about the implications this can have on Sora's life! He's…" the man sighed.

"What is Sora… _precisely?_ " King Mickey glanced down.

"He's just a child… and all of us had a promise we made… which I intend to keep," he said as DiZ sighed.

"Sora is also the bearer of the Silver Kingdom Key, and a powerful asset to the Light." The mouse King frowned.

"But that doesn't mean he should be locked away… he has to live, experience the struggles in life, and all that comes with it… so he can grow and become stronger as not just a Keyblade Bearer, but as a person." DiZ nodded slowly.

"I am aware… he is our precious _Hikari_ after all," he stated as he stood.

"DiZ! That has nothing to do with what you've chosen! We both know that you could have restored his memories in almost no time, but you've decided to keep him here!" the masked man took in a deep breath.

"Mickey, I'm in the process of doing something important to help Sora and the others when the time comes. He must remain here until it's complete," he informed the other.

"Sora needs to be with Riku and Kairi, they miss him and – "DiZ nodded.

"Riku and Kairi are already here, and are in the midst of clearing the tunnels of my laboratory. By the time they arrive, I hope that what I am in the process of doing, will be completed," DiZ stated as he began to walk towards the nearest door.

"Just let him go! Whatever it is, it's not more important than his life!" the man looked towards the King.

"Mickey, I know what I did doesn't make much sense… but… would you at least do me the favor of hearing me out? Old friend?" King Mickey looked him over and slumped slightly at the words.

"I came here with that intention…we're on the same side still…aren't we?" he questioned.

"Of course, we are. Sora lost his memories, and needed to regain them… in addition, I needed to analyze his state of being… and give him something to keep hold of until the time comes. That is what I am now in the process making sure he has," DiZ explained.

"What are you doing to Sora exactly?" the man pushed the door open.

"Come with me, I wish for you to see Sora… you'll understand then, I hope."

"Very well…"

King Mickey followed DiZ down a series of hallways towards where Sora was being kept, and let his mind ponder the events. DiZ had taken Sora away from Donald and Goofy to restore his memories, which he would have not regained otherwise, but, as it stood, DiZ still hadn't stated his entire reason for taking Sora in the first place. While he knew his intentions were more than likely good – and he desperately wanted to believe him – King Mickey still felt as if he was missing some sort of detail that was crucial to the situation.

DiZ stopped at a white door, and the mouse King looked up as he opened the door to a snow-white room with only two things within it: a monitor station, and a white lotus flower with what looked like a drop of water within its petals. The two of them entered the room, and the little King looked around in questioning before his eyes landed on the monitors. Everything in the room was silent, still, even, like a tomb, but somehow very much alive as he walked over to the series of small machines and screens and looked them over.

A heart monitor was the first thing he looked at, the pulse was perfectly fine, and the oxygen looked perfect as well. King Mickey eyed the other machines, looking at the information they were gathering: blood pressure, oxygen, brain wave function, heart beats, movement, and several other things as he took it all in, and DiZ remained silent as he looked over a printed report behind the King. Mickey's eyes trailed from the machine to the lotus, and his body became still. He hadn't noticed until then, and he felt discomforted by that. Floating, fast asleep, nestled within the petals of the lotus, was Sora. The King darted towards the object and froze just at the bottom of it as he looked at the boy in concern. DiZ watched the scene in discomfort as he stepped forward, and Mickey continued to stare.

Sora looked different to the King than he remembered. His hair was lighter, a bit messier since he'd seen him, because it had grown out just a bit. His skin tone was different as well, and he had grown taller. The King settled himself there and reached out to the pod and touched it faintly in a desperate wish that he could get the boy out of the strange contraption. Mickey looked up at the boy's face, noting how peaceful he appeared despite his situation, and his desire to leave with the boy increased. He didn't like seeing Sora like this, and he wanted nothing more than to take him to Kairi and Riku and tell them to leave. King Mickey looked to Sora once more, and then to DiZ who was watching the boy.

"His memories are fully restored," DiZ stated as the King looked the boy over once more, and noticed a faint glow to Sora's form.

"What's with the glow around him?" the man sighed.

"I'm working on implanting data into his body. It's important that he has it for when the fated time arrives," DiZ explained while King Mickey eyed him.

"This… won't hurt him… will it?" the other shook his head.

"No, he'll be fine. Thankfully, the most he's going to experience post this, is a bit of drowsiness," he informed the King.

"Good… but… what will you do? Riku and Kairi are on their way here… they more than likely view you as an enemy." DiZ smiled softly.

"Old friend, I chose to test Riku and Kairi, because I know that Sora will need allies he can trust… but… I never intended on keeping him past the point of the data implantation. Once that process is completed… they may take him home…" King Mickey frowned.

"But they still – "DiZ nodded.

"For now, it is best that they believe I am a villain instead of an ally…" the mouse King took in a deep breath.

"That's martyring yourself! Don't do that! could you imagine what – "DiZ smiled to the King.

"Mickey, I understand that it would hurt her… but she would understand… regardless… I believe I should have died long ago… alongside the woman I loved." King Mickey looked down, sorrow filling his eyes and expression as the man looked towards the monitors.

"We all should have been able to do more for them all…. but none of us could have known that someone so kind and wise would ultimately do such heinous things," he told DiZ in a steady, yet very shaky voice. The masked man looked him over with a mournful eye.

"Mickey, listen to me, only a foolish man looks for the truth in the hearts of others." The mouse King looked to him.

"I know…. it's been over a century, and I still remember it… those events… changed so many lives in a needlessly cruel fashion…" Mickey nodded faintly.

"Indeed… in time, the seven blades forged to chose those who will one-day guide us will all surface… and many things will come to pass…" the mouse King looked to DiZ.

"What of the seven court members?" DiZ shook his head.

"They are all but forgotten now. Many have died, their powers thinned by the events that have come to pass… nothing more can be done for them at the present time," he informed the other.

"I see…" DiZ took in a deep breath as he looked towards the sleeping boy.

"I recall the last time I saw that boy… the one whom tried so hard to stop this war… he came to me… crying and pleading with me to help with what has started to come to pass… I listened to him, and wrote down the entire story, in addition with data and research I possess… that is what I will hide within Sora… as none would suspect it to be with him," the masked man explained as King Mickey looked down.

"I wish we could rewrite those events… so it never happened… and things were at peace… as it was before the war began… before the Kingdom where Keyblade Bearers were welcomed and safely existed… still remained." DiZ shook his head.

"Fate can be twisted, Mickey… and while I would agree with you greatly… none of us could truly live that life in harmony… we would always feel as if it was a false reality… and eventually we would be doomed to repeat the fatal flaw of the past… the very same one we once sought to change… in the end… no fruits of good will would be bared from it. Only sorrow and torment," he said as the King sighed.

"All of those things happened after I was finished with my training. When Master Yen Sid took in that boy… I didn't meet him until he was about to begin his own training as a Bearer of the Keyblade… ultimately though, I ended up in the thick of the battle… because of an alert that Ventus sent me when the war reached the Kingdom's boarders…" DiZ hummed.

"Ventus Alveria Collins… a fine Keyblade Master… just as Aqua and Terra were… and those who sided with the boy… I remember them… spirited, full of hopes and dreams… Ventus and Ephemera were favorites of mine… as were those other two trouble makers… the four of them working together with their comrades and classmates… sharp witted, loving, and honest… their hearts were so full of light… they gave all of us hope, just as Bearers of the Keyblade were meant to…" King Mickey nodded, smiling slightly.

"You swear you'll let Sora go?" DiZ looked to the little King.

"Mickey, I keep my word. Just as I swore to uphold what they asked of me so many years ago… and… the promise I made to her." A faint pain developed in King Mickey's chest.

"None of them would want this life for anyone… but… it's to late… DiZ? Do we even know what happened to Ventus and Terra? They weren't amongst the deceased and no one saw them during the regrouping and recoveries… nor were they present amongst those killed during the purging," the King stated.

"Yes, that is because… none of them are truly dead." The Keyblade Master King looked him over.

"What do you mean?" DiZ looked to Sora and then to his friend.

"Aqua is still trapped in the Realm of Darkness, as I am certain you are aware of, correct? As that is where you were when Sora was battling the newest wave of Heartless," he stated.

"That's true… Aqua was alive last I saw her… but I am unsure of her current state." DiZ merely smiled.

"I have often sensed her on the shores of the dark margin… I believe she is waiting for someone. Terra, is still a part of Xehanort, his Nobody inhabits his body at current, but it seems that Terra is still there deep within… and young Ventus still slumbers within Castle Oblivion, awaiting the restoration of his heart… I suggest sending someone to bring Ventus to one of our safe havens would be wisest… a person who would be untouched by the affects the Castle has upon those who enter it would be best…" King Mickey eyed him.

"DiZ… are you certain its wise to move Ventus?" the man nodded.

"Yes, Organization Thirteen has decided to begin using Castle Oblivion as a base… they are not affected by its powers… thus… I suggest you do as I say on this matter my friend. Ventus is no longer safe there," he informed him.

"I'll see to it as soon as possible… I just wish… things didn't have to be this way… all of us… deserved better than this… especially him and her… they deserved to be with their family… and live to see the peace they struggled for." The other nodded to him.

"We cannot change what has happened, all we can do now, is prepare for what is to come, and take the necessary steps for when the time comes," DiZ stated as he looked back to the boy and then to the machine nearest to him.

"I just hope the sacrifices that were made haven't been in vain in the end." DiZ got on one knee and placed a hand on King Mickey's shoulder.

"Life has reasons for giving us hardships. It is so that, when the time comes, we can draw strength from the trials we endured, and face the new obstacles we will meet without fear. Believe me, Mickey, fear can control someone just as much as love can." The other nodded.

"I know… just… let them leave in peace, please. They need this life… Kairi needs him, and so does Riku, even though he might not want to admit it outright," King Mickey told him as DiZ laughed a bit whilst standing.

"Riku doesn't seem the type to like admitting to anything; however, he already has made it clear that he cares for Sora as if the boy was his brother, and Kairi… I believe her heart will bear the truth soon enough."

"I thought so…well…I should go…please don't tell Donald or Goofy I was here: they wouldn't understand the reasons behind all this." DiZ laughed again.

"Mickey, old friend, I am going out of my way to make them believe I am a villain, and that I have died! I will not utter a word…" Mickey smiled.

"Then I wish you well DiZ…. hopefully, you can join us properly one day." With that, the mouse King walked through a portal of light, and then vanished.

"I wish, but I am afraid…the information that I have to compile and place within its hiding spot…. will not give me the chance to escape…this is goodbye until things have truly begun."

 **{….}**

 _Which then turned into a quiet word…_

 **{…..}**

 **Author's Note:** Well, things are getting a bit crazy. I know that originally, this all happened very quickly, but I wanted to give this story a chance to really breathe, which is why I am planning on making this story around 27 chapters or so, depending on content. I hope that everyone is enjoying the story, and let me know what you think.

Sincerely,

ShadowDragon94.


	5. Chapter 5: Destiny's Embrace

Chapter 5: Destiny's Embrace

 **{Third Hallway of the Laboratory: 7 hours remaining}**

Riku, and Kairi sliced through the last few of the Heartless, as Donald and Goofy took care of the last few, while Donald set to using a cure spell to give them a little bit of their energy back as they finally could pause long enough to catch their breaths. Kairi had gained a greater appreciation for Sora's skill with a Keyblade, and for Riku's as well, because she was already exhausted, and in serious need of some rest. Her hands trembled, and were sore from holding onto her weapon so tightly, but she chalked that up to not know how to hold the weapon properly. Riku rotated his shoulder a bit as he looked at the Keyblade in his grip, and frowned. It bit into his hand a bit more than the other Keyblade he had used did, but he would take this one over the monstrosity he had created that Sora had used on himself.

"What the hell was I thinking back then? If I hadn't become so obsessed with power…Sora wouldn't have had to do that to himself, and he wouldn't have been in this situation…" Riku gripped Way to the Dawn tightly as he tried to map out in his mind where they were to go next.

"We're almost out aren't we?" asked Donald.

"We are…there's just two more hallways…we're making good time, but we're not done yet, and we have seven hours left." Kairi stood up straight.

"Then let's keep going…I'm ready to get Sora and leave," she stated as she walked up to the next door.

"Alright, princess, you're right…" Kairi shot Riku a glare.

"Don't call me that!" Riku laughed a bit.

"Sorry, I tried to be funny," he said.

"Well, don't! I'm not in the mood right now." Riku rolled his eyes.

"Clearly," he stated.

"Riku! Don't be a jerk!" the silver-haired teen shook his head.

"Sorry, I know, but I'm just trying to make us all feel a bit better. We're in enough shit as it is," he told her bluntly.

"That's putting it mildly, Riku." He nodded.

"Yea, it is. Come on, let's go get Sora…"

"Okay." The four of them walked forward and into the next fight, willing to do whatever it took to find Sora, and hoping that he was okay.

 _"Kairi?"_

The sound of the voice again caused the red headed girl to freeze in her tracks. Since they had left the island, she had been hearing this voice in her head, and while she was highly confused, and slightly concerned, she felt as if she should know that voice, and who it belonged to but couldn't place it. Her Keyblade trembled slightly in her grip as she moved it to the other hand and looked at the faint blisters that had formed. Kairi felt a small smile come to her face as she rubbed her hand gently as she penned her Keyblade in the crook of her arm, crouching onto the ground for a moment.

This reminded her of Sora a great deal for some reason, and she was beginning to recall why: Sora always wore gloves. Seeing the blisters on her hands made her realize why he had always done that, and made her wish she had a pair of them herself to ease some of the pain from gripping the Keyblade so tightly. As she inspected the blisters on her palms, Riku turned to her, and crouched beside her as he looked to her hand.

"Hey, let me see your hand," Riku said as he looked at the red marks on her fingers and hand.

"It'll be fine. I just need to remember to wear gloves from now on when I use Destiny's Embrace." He nodded as he looked at the one on the top of her palm that had started to bleed a bit.

"Yea, Sora wore gloves a lot, and now I kind of get why. He knew it protected his hands," he stated as he looked to Donald, who started to heal her hands.

"I think I need to start packing some with me." Riku nodded.

"That would be a good idea for both of us." Kairi looked at the watch on his wrist.

"How much longer?" she asked.

"I think about five hours, and we have two more hallways. After that we'll be where we're supposed to be." Kairi nodded.

"Okay, let's go then…"

Kairi started walking with the others not far behind her as Riku watched her. The girl was remarkably determined to find Sora, and he knew why. He'd noticed it the night they'd been returned to the island, and Sora hadn't come with them. It was obvious for the most part, and when she had walked to the drawing, and started drawing more to it as she cried, it became very clear to him: _Kairi was in love with Sora_. It had always been that way, and would never change. Honestly, Riku was glad she cared for Sora more than she did for him in that sense.

He couldn't find it in himself to actually love her like that, when she always seemed to lean more towards the brunette boy, and even before this, he knew she and himself wouldn't have worked out well. Kairi was strong, stubborn, and remarkably loving and selfless; all qualities he honestly lacked, in one way or another. Sora just fit better with Kairi. He could make her laugh and smile in a way that was seamlessly perfect. Sora could cheer her up, and comfort her when she cried, when all Riku could do was give her encouraging words, like he had in the past year.

It had been Sora who had honestly gone through all the hoops and dangers to get to Kairi, and to him, who was a traitor. Riku knew he could never live that down, but he hoped constantly that Sora had truly forgiven him, and that Kairi had as well. It had been a year, and thus, he had no idea what Sora recalled, or what he would do if he saw Riku, but he hoped that he would walk up to him and hug him, tell him he missed them both, and that Kairi could finally put her arms around the one she loved and tell him how she felt.

 _"That's what I want. For Sora to smile, to hug us both, and for Kairi to hold onto him and tell him she loves him, and for us to go home. That's all I want… I would give up my ability to wield my Keyblade if it meant they both were safe and sound, and happy."_

The second Riku thought those words, Way to the Dawn grew lighter in weight. His strained arm relaxed greatly, and he gaped at the sensation. It felt strange, and oddly relieving. Had that been what this Keyblade had waited for? For Riku to admit that he didn't need power in order to see those he loved happy? A small smile graced his features as he thought of it. Could he truly live without being a Keyblade wielder? His answer was found as he saw Kairi hoist up her Keyblade and bring it down on a stray Heartless, and it was a surprisingly simple and clean answer: yes, he could live without it.

Riku didn't need power, he didn't need to be a Keyblade wielder, and he didn't need to save worlds to know that he had the ability to make those he loved happy, and that knowledge eased the burden on his heart and made him feel feather light, compared to lead laden. Riku now could only hope that Sora was as forgiving as he had just managed to be on himself.

 **{White Room: 4 hours remaining}**

 _"Kairi?"_

DiZ glanced up from the screen that showed seventy-five percent of the data had been transferred as he heard the sound of the boy's voice echo within his mind. The man frowned, noticing that since Kairi and Riku had arrived, Sora had begun to respond to their presences. The fact that the boy who had been still for almost a year, since he had picked the boy up in Castle Oblivion and brought him here. When he had gotten Sora, the boy had already turned fourteen during the last leg of his journey, having sent Riku and Kairi home before searching for more answers about the Heartless, and Organization Thirteen, which had started to rear its head during the last time Sora went to Hollow Bastion.

The boy, Donald, and Goofy had went into Castle Oblivion when it was April, and left the place in June, which was when DiZ took him to St. Petersburg, where he could restore the boy's memories, and implant the data he needed to. As it stood, Sora was now almost sixteen, and had spent roughly a year with him, and only a little under a year from the Destiny Islands, due to the slower timeframes of St. Petersburg and Castle Oblivion.

" _The two of you share a connection with Sora, that I do not doubt… but the time will come where the bonds you all share shall be tested…"_ DiZ thought.

DiZ watched the percentage go up, as the four people in the rescue party moved closer, knowing that soon he would have to set his plan into motion. DiZ didn't like the idea of disappearing, but, he felt it was necessary, if he were to both aid Sora, and eventually return in the near future to help the boy and the others in the end game that was fast approaching. He frowned to himself as he looked to Sora, whose hand gave a faint twitch, as if responding to something.

A small smile graced DiZ's features as he looked at the monitor and then the boy. Sora was truly fascinating, and he would have loved to have known the boy when he was still studying the matters of the heart in his earlier years. Sora would have been vital to his research, and would have also been fascinating to learn from. His outlook on the world was different from others, and while he was still naïve, and a bit childish, Sora had a form of cunning and natural grace when it came to fighting and knowing of other people's true selves.

Sora was trusting, but not entirely. That had been proven time and time again when going up against foes such as Maleficent, or even Hades. The boy had little to no trust in the face of an adversary, and atop that, he was remarkably stern-faced towards them as well. DiZ glanced in the boy's direction as he saw the boy move a bit more, as if he was trying to move around in the chamber.

 _"He's fighting something… the restraints? The tubes? What is he fighting?"_

The masked man looked at the vitals that were showing surprisingly strong brain waves that went above the normal levels. From what he had seen, Sora's mind seemed to function on higher-than-average levels, which explained the boy's energy levels. Sora's body seemed to have immense amount of energy, and that was a key indicator of a special ability that he had seen a few others possess in the past. DiZ glanced at his monitor, before sighing as he saw a few Heartless being wiped out, and felt relief flood him when he saw that Riku, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy were almost in the room. Sora's entire body straightened a bit, as if tensing, before growing relaxed again, which caused DiZ to stare as the boy's eyelids moved faintly.

 _"Kairi… Riku…"_

"Well, you are something else. Dream Walking is dangerous, young man, and doing this so freely is risky alone…you may get caught in a layer-fold dream if you aren't careful," he stated, as he watched the boy move a bit more.

 _"KAIRI! RIKU!"_

DiZ felt a faint pulse of energy come through the room as the boy clenched his right hand, and the Kingdom Key appeared in his grasp. His eye grew wide as the boy's arm shook in effort to raise it, before dropping again as he went still and lifeless as the Keyblade vanished. DiZ hummed as he looked at the monitors in questioning, and found they had spiked when he had summoned the Keyblade and had now dropped back to the levels they had been at earlier. Sora's brain waves were far from normal, and his physical functions were surprisingly perfect, considering his age. He hummed in mild thought again as he looked the boy, and then at the monitors, as he tried to solve the riddle that was the boy before him.

"No matter how much I examine… or delve into in an attempt to understand this boy, nothing gives in and allows me to see what I'm seeking… just what are you? Sora?" DiZ sighed in defeat as the percentage grew higher, almost complete as he began shutting off the machines, knowing that Sora wouldn't need the monitors anymore.

"Well… I suppose observing from the sidelines is all I can do for now…"

 **{Time Remaining: 1 hour}**

"DAMMIT TO HELL!" Riku yelled as they rounded the corner to a large, heavy door, where the lock refused to open.

"We have an hour still, don't we?" Riku glared to Goofy.

"There is still one hallway left, and I bet it's overflowing with Heartless dammit… there's no way we'll make it in time!" he said as he banged his fist against the door and put his forehead against it.

"Riku…please… don't – "Riku cut her off.

"We won't make it, Kairi! This was against us from the start, we…" a voice called out to them.

 _"KAIRI! RIKU!"_

"Who…."

 _"Come on! Please! Don't give up! I know you're here! Please!"_

"Who is that?" asked Donald.

 _"Thanks guys, you forgot me already?"_

"Wait….is…"

 _"Now you're catching on! Thanks a lot, Kairi…"_

"Sora!" Kairi and Riku exclaimed at once.

"What? That can't be Sora!"

"Yea, Sora doesn't sound like that," said Goofy.

"I think it is Sora… it… I don't know, it just makes sense…"

"Are you both sure that's Sora? What if it's a trick?" asked Donald.

"We'll find out when we get to him. For now…." Riku looked at the door.

"I guess we only have one option left then," said the silver-haired teen.

"What is it?" Riku raised his Keyblade up, with his arm positioned to strike. Getting the hint, the others prepared to assault the final obstacle in the way.

"ATTACK!"

A barrage of hits and spells rammed into the door as Donald used several explosive spells, as Goofy pounded against the door with his shield, and as Riku and Kairi slashed at it with their Keyblades. The hits were less than pleasant as they stung their arms, and the banging rang in their ears as they kept attacking the metal door and began to dent it inwards. The moment the center of the door cracked enough to where Riku could see through to the other side, he screamed for another assault on the gap. The four of them struck at once, and with a final thunder spell, it split apart and they crawled their way into the other side. The four rescuers darted through the hallway as small swirling pools of shadows appeared and Heartless began to swarm while they hacked their way through the bevy of Heartless.

Kairi felt her lungs burn, and her legs and arms throb, as she struck another Heartless, and it vanished. She panted as she looked onward, and Riku jumped ahead of her and slashed through another series of Heartless as she caught her breath and prayed that they made the deadline. She looked at a few Heartless and crouched, before jumping forward headlong into the fight, with Donald and Goofy tailing her. Kairi desperately wanted to see Sora again, and she missed him in such a way that it was painful, and made her heart shake in her chest at the mere idea of never seeing him again. That was what drove her forward now, what made her grip her Keyblade firmly in her blistered hands, what pushed her legs when they throbbed from overexertion, what forced air in and out of her lungs, and what told her to not surrender to her physical limits.

 _"I am a Keyblade wielder now, and I will fight! I promised myself that when I had the chance, I would help Sora, and protect him as he did me and Riku a year ago. I miss him, and I don't want another day without him there by our side! Sora! Hold on, I'm coming for you!"_

She spun on her heel and sliced a Heartless in half as Riku jumped in beside her and cut down another one as they prepared themselves for the next leg of the battle and faced the Heartless head on. They all had their thoughts, and their ambitions in this fight, but the main one was to survive, save Sora, and escape. They wanted to go home, and be at peace for a while. Donald and Goofy wanted to amend for their mistakes, and all Kairi and Riku wanted was to hug their friend again and be by his side. Sora was family to them, and they were going to fight hell itself if it meant being with him once more. Kairi could already remember his smile and his laughter as she sprung forward towards a white door, and kept determination settled into her eyes.

Sora was waiting for them on the other side of that door, and they were almost out of time. Riku shoved through more Heartless as Donald and Goofy pressed forward with them, and Kairi dove under a set of leaping Heartless and skidded across the floor, before raising her Keyblade to attack them again. Riku had to admit, Kairi was a fast learner, and that was paying off as they grew closer and closer to their destination, where they would need to more than likely battle their way through not only the Heartless, but the man in charge: _DiZ._ Determination settled into cyan eyes as the four of them pressed forward once more, and with a yell, took down the last series of Heartless, and hit the door at long last.

"We have thirty minutes!" said Riku.

"Move out of my way!" Donald's declaration had them stepping back as he raised his staff.

"What are you going to do?" asked Goofy.

"I'm blowing this thing away! No one stands between me and my friends!"

"Go for it, Donald!" declared Kairi, as Goofy gave the two Keyblade wielders shelter.

"THUNDER!"

A near sonic sounding clatter plowed through the area, and struck the door with a deafening boom as the iron door was pealed backwards, as if an explosion had taken place. Donald nodded firmly with a determined look as he stepped through the busted door, and the others followed. Their stride was strong as they started towards the white door that laid before them, where they knew the person they had longed to see was awaiting them. Kairi felt her heart pound in her chest as she prepared herself for the very thing she had been waiting for since a year ago, and Riku placed a hand on her shoulder before smiling as he dropped his hand while fixing his grip on Way to the Dawn as his cyan eyes focused on the door.

 _"Hold on Sora, we're coming…"_

 **{Unknown: 20 minutes remaining}**

Sky-blue eyes opened faintly to dim light, as Sora looked around him as he floated momentarily, before finally touching down on the cold floor. The sensation of metal and glass met his senses as he blinked again to regain his senses, before sitting up slowly. His hand touched the coolness of thick glass again as he turned to see where he had been laid down. Standing a bit wobbly at first to get a better look at his surroundings, Sora took note that something was off about where he was. Firstly, he was in that strange, black void from his early dreams, and then he noted that there was a series of faintly glowing Stations of Awakening around him, all connected by stain glass steps. His eyes scanned the area, before he looked down.

"What the hell?!"

Below him was a station of amber tone, with four smaller circles at what would be the four corners of a circle. Within the circle was a clover shape of ornate design, and within the dips of the clover were a series of hearts. The images portrayed was one of him facing towards the wind, and another of him in what appeared to be a freefall. Sora's eyes ghosted over to the top, where the clover was completely redone, the tips pointing and at the center his crown pendant.

Sora touched where he felt the pendant laid, cool as ice, against his skin, while he looked to the right of him at the top and saw a picture of Goofy, the top left was Donald, and then his eyes traveled to the bottom left, where Kairi was depicted, and then the bottom right, where Riku was also depicted. Stepping back further, Sora took note of the only full color image was of him, older, and dressed differently, while grasping the Kingdom Keyblade.

His hair was chestnut colored, eyes mischievous – which he supposed that much about his appearance hadn't changed – his skin had lightened a bit, and with his taller, and a bit more filled-out form, was the change of attire. The image wore clothing with a black base, touches of navy blue in his pants, and shirt that had red pockets. His jacket had what appeared to be shoulder plates of some kind, yellow straps, and white lining on it with a hood.

His pants were equipped with yellow straps that went about his upper legs and hips, where two red pouches were held that bore black X-shaped straps. His eyes then traveled to the gloves, black, yellow wrist banded, and with white X-shapes and metal studs on the knuckles. His shoes had changed, they were black, yellow, and blue-strapped. Sora shook his head and turned away from the images as his head throbbed, and he tried to reason why he was seeing this.

"Wait…am I….at my own Station of Awakening?" he asked himself.

 _"That has to be it, it's the only thing that makes any sense…."_

"SORA?!" sky-blue eyes widened.

"Kairi?! Kairi? Where are you?"

"Sora, come on, please…where are you in here? Tell us! This place is huge!"

"I'm right here, Kairi…what are…." His mind flashed to the past, his memories returning as he recanted the previous events.

"They don't know where I am… I'm in that laboratory still…"

"Sora?! Please! Where are you?!" another voice called to him.

"Riku! Kairi…I'm here! I'm in the main lab!"

"Sora! Sora! Please…."

"I'M HERE, DON'T LEAVE ME! I'M RIGHT HERE, PLEASE! KAIRI! RIKU _! PLEASE, HELP ME! DON'T LEAVE ME ALONE!"_

"Sora? It's okay, you're never alone…you've never been alone… not even for a second."

"Who's there?" Sora looked around him.

"So much to do, so little time. Sora, I have always been here. You heard my voice almost two years ago when you were chosen to wield the Keyblade."

"The guiding voice… you were the voice that…" Sora looked to the darkness around him.

"Remember, Sora, the closer you grow to the light, the darker your shadow becomes…" Sora felt his body freeze when a pair of arms locked around him, pinning his arms to his sides.

"Let me go!"

"Shush, its fine… I'm not gonna hurt you… why would I, Sora? Don't you remember me at all?" asked the person.

"Who are you?"

Sora was suddenly flipped around to face the person who put their hands on his shoulders. He looked into midnight blue eyes and felt his discomfort ease slightly, even though he didn't know why. A snarky grin appeared on lightly tanned lips as the person looked him in the eye, and laughed just a bit. Even though he wasn't certain how or why, he knew them, and he felt guilty for not recalling their name.

"No need to worry, I have your back… hell…we've always had each other's backs. Just trust me," they stated. Sora looked them in the eye again.

"Okay…" the other pulled him into a hug.

"I'm sorry I left, but, I needed to... so I could help us both, and all those we love, and whose hearts we have touched… Sora… I'll find you again, I promise…" with that, he and the other person fell through the darkness and into nothingness.

 **{….}**

 _And then the word grew louder and louder…_

 **{…}**

 **Author's Note:** A vast majority of this story is just a clean up and changing certain details or events around to make them fit better. I hope you guys enjoy the story, and let me know what you think.

Sincerely,

ShadowDragon94.


	6. Chapter 6: Path Before You

Chapter 6: Path Before You

 **{Time Remaining: 10 Minutes}**

A crash came into a pristine white room as smoke billowed in around the group of four. Cyan eyes scanned the room, seeing nothing but the sterile white that surrounded them as they stepped cautiously into the room, keeping their weapons at the ready as they started further and further into the room, looking for any signs of the man who had been leading them through this mess since they'd arrived, but thus far, they had found nothing.

"SORA?! WHERE ARE YOU?!" Donald called out as he started to walk away from the group.

"What is this place? It's practically empty…" Kairi eyed a small dresser like object as Riku started searching for any signs of anyone else in the room.

"I'm not sure… I guess it's the main lab or something," Riku stated.

"SORA!" Kairi felt anxiety begin to rise within her.

"Riku… did we do all of that for nothing? Was it all a lie?" she questioned as she felt her legs cave out from under her.

"Kairi, we don't know that for certain. We'll keep looking… he could be here and we just aren't looking in the right places…" the girl felt tears well up in her eyes.

"What if we were tricked though? Then what do we do? I want him back! I want him to come back, Riku! Nothing feels right anymore… it's like we're just there back home, like we're on a different world compared to the others… because… Sora… he's not… there with us…" Kairi hated sounding like she did right then, but at this point, she could stand no more. Despite having fought her way alongside Riku, Donald, and Goofy to find someone she cared for, choosing to put herself in harms way, and suffering through so much, it felt as though it had amounted to nothing, and as that thought consumed her, Kairi felt herself reach her breaking point.

"I know, Kairi, I want him to come back, too. I miss him, and he's like my brother, Kairi…we all need him back," said Riku.

"Awh…." Donald felt sorrow fill him alongside Goofy.

They had worked so hard to get where they were now, and it had all been for nothing. Kairi felt her emotions, that had been buried away for a year, boil over, and she was sobbing in seconds. Riku pulled her into his arms and did his best to comfort her, as Donald and Goofy walked over and put their arms around them both, and did their best to convey their own sorrows in silence, as Kairi cried enough for all four of them. The girl was tormented, and it was clear in her tears and the heart-broken sobs that came from her. Kairi was tired, and she was drawn to the point that she couldn't take anymore. It was as the four of them were settled there that a series of footsteps came to their attention. Riku was instantly on guard, drawing his Keyblade and locking his cyan eyes on the figure.

Standing before them was the masked man, and his calm expression. He looked them over as Kairi looked to the man with hate in her expression. DiZ looked them over and felt his own heart throb at the look in the girl's eyes. Kairi was warm, she was sweet, kind, loving, and beautiful; but her anger was nothing but eclipsing her normal personality. DiZ knew then and there that there could have been thousands of better ways to remedy this situation, but his best bet at the moment would be find a way to give them hope, and in doing that, it meant he would honor his words to King Mickey and give Sora back to his friends. Riku stood, and held his Keyblade up with a menacing glare upon his face.

"Hello, Riku Hirigaya, Kairi Misaki, Donald Duck, and Goofy Goof," DiZ stated.

"You! You son of a…." Riku charged.

DiZ watched the youth moved forward before lashing at him with his Keyblade. The man looked the boy over as he prepared to further attack, when he found himself cornered by, not only Riku, but Donald, Goofy, and Kairi. Knowing he was cornered, DiZ held his hands up and looked around him as a Keyblade with flowers and vines at the teeth nudged his chest harshly. Kairi's eyes kept a harsh, intense glare on him as the Keyblade remained pressed against him. To see a Princess of Heart willingly point a weapon at someone showed DiZ how dear this boy was to this girl. He looked next into cyan eyes that showed him determination: not only to find the boy that Kairi held so dear, but to save his best friend. He then looked into two sets of dark eyes that were glaring in confidence that they would still win.

"My, I am indeed cornered. No worries… Kairi Misaki, and Riku Hirigaya… the two of you have passed the test," DiZ stated.

"You better explain! Or I will fucking gut you!" Riku snarled. DiZ nodded slowly as Way to the Dawn's teeth touched his throat.

"I wanted to make sure you weren't imposters, and also that you were loyal…I have no need of the boy. Take him…" Riku glanced at him, and then narrowed his eyes.

"What did you do to Sora?" the man smirked.

"Find out… farewell…." the man vanished into nothingness, and the others were left stunned as Riku and Kairi looked for DiZ, as a series of machines whirled to life and revealed themselves.

"WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU?! DAMMIT! YOU FACE ME! YOU DAMN COWARD!" Riku yelled as he gritted his teeth.

"Riku, there's something happening!" declared Goofy.

The four of them looked around as machines appeared from the floor and flipped open to reveal a series of details, and colored lights upon the screens. Riku, Kairi, Donald, and Goofy looked them over in questioning as they read through what it stated was happening. The contraptions had a set of information that told about blood pressure, oxygen levels, brain waves, and heart beats. Kairi felt her body tense at the mere idea of what was attached to all these details, when a sharp snap was heard. Four pairs of eyes looked around the room as the lights flickered briefly, and they were momentarily plunged into darkness. The group shouted in surprise, and then slowly, the lights began to flicker back on, startling them once more as they looked around.

"What was that?" asked Kairi.

"I don't know….it could have been a trick done by DiZ, for all we know…."

The four of them looked around the room as the lights flickered a few more times before finally stabilizing. The monitors had shut off, and now there was no sound in the room except for a small bit of the sound of water. Kairi looked around the room, and then her eyes landed upon the contraption that favored a white lotus with a droplet of water at the center. Her eyes narrowed, the dark object closer to the floor than it had first appeared as she moved a little closer. The others followed her before she got closer, and then she looked at the face that she could finally make out.

"S-Sora…" her voice trembled as the others looked towards where she was, and Riku found himself more than shocked as he noticed the boy seemingly sleeping within the strange contraption.

Kairi ran forward, before the others could stop her as she went up to the contraption and slammed her hands upon the clear sphere, finding it firm and unyielding as she tried to get Sora to open his eyes while the others went up to her, trying find out what could be done to get the boy out of the place as Riku looked around the area before drawing his Keyblade again.

"Step back!" Kairi did as told while the others prepared for whatever would come next.

Riku looked at the sphere and lunged forward, piercing it, and causing the fluid from within to burst forth. The silver-haired teenager shouted in surprise as he vanished his Keyblade and reached forward as the boy dressed in simple black clothing, was forced out of the pod, and Riku gathered him into his arms as quickly as he could while the two of them were swept away. The two of them landed harshly upon the floor with a wet thud as Kairi, Donald, and Goofy raced to their side. Riku sat himself upright, coughing to get the bitter tasting fluid out of his mouth as he looked to the boy lying unconscious against his side.

Kairi settled upon her knees as Riku pulled Sora onto his back, and pressed his head to the other's chest, hearing the strained sound of his breathing alongside his heartbeat before he began to do a series of percussions on the boy's chest. He sounded as if his lungs were trying to expand, but couldn't due to the fluid Riku knew that meant that, despite him having a heartbeat and breathing, he wouldn't for long if he didn't get the water up. Kairi was on her knees next to them, when Riku pushed down on the other's sternum hard enough to cause a bit of pain, and the boy's sky-blue eyes shot open as the boy coughed loudly, the water rushing out of his mouth as Riku rolled him over onto his side.

"Thank God!" muttered Donald.

Familiar sky-blue eyes glanced weakly around the room as the others leaned over him while Sora took in a few shaky breaths, trying to get his bearings as the others smiled down to him as Riku reached forward to feel of the boy's pulse, finding it even, but a bit elevated as cyan eyes met ones that reflected the color of the sky, brown bangs drenched, and hanging into his eyes.

"R-Riku?" the other nodded.

"Hey there, long time no see, Sora," he stated as the boy took in a deep breath.

"Y-You…" the boy started coughing again.

"Take it easy for a moment. Let's get you sat up first, okay?" Riku told him as he started to help the boy sit up. Sora shivered a bit as Riku kept himself beside the other as Kairi came towards him, and he smiled, shivering more as Riku looked around the room, hoping to find something warm for the boy to change into.

"Kairi, can you see if there's anything that Sora can change into in that dresser thing over there?" Riku asked as the girl nodded and went over to it.

The girl went carefully over to the dresser, and was thankful to find what seemed to be a black pair of pants, a dark blue long-sleeved shirt, coat, and scarf. She pulled the clothes out, and opened the next drawer, finding a pair of short combat-style boots in there which she took out. Kairi rose an eyebrow in confusion as she gathered up the clothes and started towards the group as Sora glanced her way alongside the others as she returned, and settled on the ground, away from the drenched area of the floor.

"I don't know who left them, but there were some clothes," she stated as Sora nodded.

"T-Thanks…"

"We'll let you get changed…" the boy felt a blush come to his features.

"Um…" Riku laughed.

"Let's get you up, so you can get out of those wet clothes," he told him as he helped Sora to his feet, the boy shaking himself out a bit as he got his bearings before Kairi handed him the clothes.

"Don't worry, we won't look or anything," he said as he ruffled the boy's hair.

"Riku…." the other smiled as the four of them turned around while Sora fumbled with the wet clothes he had on, before finally being able to get into dry clothes. Sora was quick to pull on the dry pants and put on the boots he'd been given – somewhat surprised to find that socks had been provided – and then, he tugged on the dark blue long-sleeve shirt, taking in a slight breath as he felt his crown pendant fall out of the v-shaped collar of the shirt before he looked to the others.

"Okay…" the group of four turned around to face him, and the moment Sora stepped forward, he was nearly knocked to the ground as the four of them wrapped him into their arms. Kairi was at his front, arms around his waist while Riku had his arms around both of them and Donald and Goofy had their arms wrapped around his sides and back, the group holding him close, almost as if they feared he would disappear if they let him go.

"Sora…" the boy glanced to Kairi.

"Yea… Kairi?" the girl felt tears well up in her eyes.

"You're really here… I'm so happy to see you again… I thought we'd never… see you again…" tears fell from her eyes, rolling down her cheeks as Sora looked to her and the other three let go as Sora slowly pulled Kairi into his arms, holding her close as he rested his head atop her own.

"We weren't sure if we were going to find you or not," Riku stated as he watched the two of them, the boy's dark brown hair still fairly soaked from the fluid in the pod.

"You sure did take a long time to find me…" Riku laughed.

"Well, we didn't have any clue where you were," he told him.

"All the same… I'm glad you guys found me… maybe I should have wrote to you guys…" Donald eyed the boy, noting that he was a bit taller as the boy hugged Kairi.

"You were asleep for a whole year, so I doubt you would have been able to do that," he stated as the boy stared at him.

"A-A year?! Really?!" Kairi smiled as she looked to him.

"Yea, we've been trying to find you… and I'm happy that we did… it's been to long since you came home," she told him as Sora took in a deep breath, looking at the coat that had been dropped on the ground when Kairi had hugged him.

"So… where am I?" Riku rose an eyebrow.

"A world called St. Petersburg. It's really cold here, so when we leave, you better make sure you have that coat, and gloves on, if you don't you'll freeze to death," he stated as Sora nodded, grabbing the clothing item off the floor before tugging the black coat on, buttoning it up and being grateful that the coat had a high collar and only fell at his hips.

"Okay, should we start getting ready to go?" the group nodded.

"Yea, Donald? Goofy? Where are we supposed to go?" inquired Kairi.

"We're supposed to head to the nearest village and wait there…. That would be… St. Petersburg, the main city near here." Sora rose an eyebrow.

"I thought that the world was called St. Petersburg?" asked the brunette.

"Yea, but it's also a town, kind of like our world is called the Destiny Islands, even though we live on the Destiny Islands. So, I guess it's not that strange, huh?" the others shrugged.

"You have a point there," Sora stated with a smile as Kairi stared at the boy.

In the last year, Sora had grown to be very handsome, and she could easily admit that. Seeing him move around, though, as they started towards the exit and he got himself used to moving again spooked her in a strange way. Sora's walk wasn't as lax as it had been, and his steps hardly made a sound. His eyes were sharper, more focused, and his voice was smooth as silk, and steady. Kairi felt her cheeks flush as she watched him move around and look at the giant room in interest as they tried to let him get adapted. Sora turned on his heels to face them, and smiled as he looked them over momentarily.

Seconds later, he was in front of them, looking at how they'd changed, and could do nothing more than be his normal happy-go-lucky self. Seeing that, and his bright smile, was all Kairi needed to know that this was her Sora. He had the kind of personality that just about anyone would fall in love with, and his smile was as bright as the sun, while his eyes were as clear as the sky on a warm summer day.

 _"He's… different, but he's… also not different…."_

"Sora? Are you ready to go?" asked Goofy.

"Yep!"

"Then come on, twerp," said Riku.

"That's it! Revenge!"

Riku was given a swift kick to his back, startling the others as he fell over and, Sora shot him an irritated look. Riku laughed at the expression, and was happy to see that, while Sora was indeed older, he hadn't grown entirely out of his childish antics. Kairi smiled and shook her head as they left the main room and started towards the exit by following the destruction along the way. Sora was the first one out, and stepped carefully through the mess as Kairi, Riku, Donald, and Goofy followed him. The five of them were cautious, and wary of their surroundings, in case of another Heartless attack. Kairi, in a whisper, explained some of the details to Sora, who nodded and responded back in the same tone, before glancing around as they exited the first hallway.

Cyan eyes watched the other boy's movements as they started to go further out of the center of the complex. Sora used to be very relaxed when he walked, and though he knew the other boy didn't walk loudly when they were younger, his steps now made no sound at all. The body language made the silver-haired teen feel guilty, and for more than one of his previous actions. Sora had changed, and it unnerved him to an extent, because Kairi almost didn't seem to notice. The boy they had known a year ago wasn't there anymore.

Their friend had become a warrior, a Keyblade wielder, and a person used to battles, and capable of winning them with skillful attacks. Sora wasn't just an innocent child anymore. Riku would venture a guess to say that Sora wasn't even remotely the same boy that got split up from them. In that single year, their best friend had become a fighter, and had lost some of his old personality. The five of them continued walking, silent, and watchful for Heartless or anything else as they got further and further out of the center, and closer to the exit.

Sora muttered something about not being fond of overly cold areas, and being glad he was getting out of the place, finally. Kairi and Riku could understand the reason for his dislike of the area – they did live on a tropical island, after all – and could also understand his desire to leave the complex as fast as possible. Donald and Goofy kept out their staff and shield, while the three Keyblade wielders kept themselves on guard as they finally made it to the last hallway of the complex.

"So, how did you four get here?" Sora asked they started towards the white room where their challenge had begun.

"We used a Gummi Ship." The brunette nodded as he glanced around the destroyed hallway.

"How bad were the Heartless around here?" he questioned.

"Pretty bad. We ran into about six hundred in total, I would think." Sora glanced around and looked at a slash on a wall.

"Donald and Goofy couldn't have gotten rid of them all by themselves," he stated.

"Hey! We can handle ourselves!" declared Donald. Sora looked to them.

"I know that! But I also know that you couldn't kill off six hundred Heartless alone, and protect Riku and Kairi…" the two looked down.

"They didn't," said Kairi.

"I know, the two of you have Keyblades now." Cyan and aquamarine eyes looked at him in surprise.

"How did…" started Donald.

"It makes sense…I mean…the King wouldn't just let you come on a dangerous adventure to look for a Keyblade wielder kidnapped by the darkness… without a Keyblade yourselves." Kairi, and Riku glanced down in a bit of guilt.

"We should have said something earlier, but we…" Sora glanced to them.

"After what happened… I never wanted the two of you, to be involved in this anymore… I didn't want you guys to get hurt again," he stated.

"Sora… we know that it's difficult… but…" sky-blue eyes looked to Kairi and Riku.

"Regardless, whatever lies beyond this morning… it's a little later on, right? I'm glad the two of you came with Donald and Goofy to find me. It's nice to know you didn't forget me," Sora said as he smiled.

"We'd never forget you, Sora." Kairi walked to him and grabbed his hand, causing him to look at her.

"Thanks, Kairi," he stated, as Riku came over and ruffled his now dry hair.

"It's impossible with your spastic personality." Sky-blue eyes narrowed in annoyance.

"Alright, you silver-haired imp," he mumbled.

"Nice to see you haven't changed." Sora glanced to Riku and Kairi, as Donald and Goofy came to them as well.

Sora was smothered in a group hug, despite standing where they were. He honestly couldn't have been happier to be back in their arms and safe with those he loved. Sora would dream about them often when he was sleeping, and did all he could to find a way to reach out to them somehow – that had paid off, with DiZ's implant of the ability to seek people out via dreams – and now, he was going home, and would be with his friends and family again. Sora closed his eyes, taking in this single moment where the five of them were in this laboratory, in a cold world, and still he felt safe and warm with them there.

"Awh! Isn't that a wonderful hallmark moment!" stated a faintly thick accented voice that caused Donald and Goofy to jump in front of the three teenagers.

"What are you doing here?!" Whatever peace had settled over them was gone now, replaced by the sense of tension, as their bodies automatically went into form for attack and defense.

 **{….}**

' _Til it was a battle cry…_

 **{…..}**

 **Author's Note:** We're about to get into some very interesting moments of quiet and slight peace and conversations with our group. I hope you guys enjoy the story, and let me know what you think!

Sincerely,

ShadowDragon94.


	7. Chapter 7: Dreary Town

Chapter 7: Dreary Town

Sky blue eyes stared at the person – if one could describe them as such – who had an irate look on their face while the group became closer as they prepared for a potential attack. The person before them, resembled an overly large, bipedal feline with black fur, and dark, beady eyes. They wore attire that was mainly dark blue from his shoes, to the armor on his hands and shoulders. However, his shirt, under the large blue X shape at his chest, was red and white lined. Sora frowned a bit as he felt the sensation of Darkness around the other, and took into account the sudden look of anger and shock upon Donald and Goofy's faces, letting him know that they knew the person.

"What are _you_ doing here?!" declared Donald as he stepped in front of Sora, Riku, and Kairi alongside Goofy.

"Why, I just came here to see if the rumors were true!"

"What rumors?" asked Goofy.

"That DiZ had captured a Keyblade Wielder! Judging from those three behind you… I'd say that there's some truth to dat!" dark eyes examined the scrapes across the walls.

"Pete! You got about six seconds to get out of here before – "the other laughed at Donald's outburst.

"Before what? You sic your magic and shield on me? Or are those three kinds gonna do something?" the now identified Pete stated.

"What's stopping us?" Riku's voice echoed out, and the cat laughed again.

"I'll tell you what! _My Heartless!_ You see, I sent some of my lackeys inside to see if the man of this here laboratory's as big and tough as they say. I also thought of getting the Keyblade Bearer as well… and with DiZ as a Heartless he'd be the perfect body guard for me. So, once he's a Heartless, he'll do as I say!" Pete stated.

"I hate to break it too you… but DiZ isn't here… and we've already gotten rid of the Heartless in this lab… so…" Sora's tone caused the others to look at him in questioning as he sent a bored expression towards Pete who gawked at them.

"W-W WHAT?!" Donald and Goofy frowned.

"How did you get out of that void prison that the King put you in?" Goofy questioned as Pete narrowed his eyes.

"So, you got rid of the Heartless? Fine! And as for how I got out, _Maleficent,_ that's how! And soon, your world… no, no, no, all the worlds! Are gonna belong to yours truly. Cause Maleficent's gonna help me conquer'em!" Pete stated.

Suddenly, there was a loud laugh from behind Donald and Goofy. The large cat looked behind them, as Riku and Kairi stared at the laughing brunette, who was doing his best not to be too loud. Sora couldn't help but continue laughing as he heard what Pete said. Maleficent may have gotten him out, but he couldn't see her messing around with anyone for a long time, and if she was able to finally come back, she wouldn't be as strong as she previously was.

"Hey! What are you laughing about?!" asked the feline.

"Maleficent can't do anything!" Sora stepped forward a bit as he continued to laugh.

"What?!" questioned Pete, as he glared at the smaller teen.

"She's toast!" Donald and Goofy looked at the brunette in knowing, while Pete gaped at the boy.

"What do you mean… wait….IT WAS YOU! YOU'RE THE ONE THAT DID IT!" declared Pete as he pointed an accusing finger at the laughing boy.

"Well… we might have had something to do with that…" Sora put his hands behind his head with a coy smirk upon his face.

Riku and Kairi gaped onwards in shock at the statement from the other. Sora's voice had sounded almost cocky, and a bit impish in almost upfront stating that he was the one who had done something to Maleficent. Sky-blue eyes gleamed in a vindictive fashion momentarily, before Pete glared at the boy. Sora crossed his arms over his chest and watched the cat as he stomped his foot and growled at him as he contemplated what to do at this news.

"You killed Maleficent! You're the one that did it! You're the one that killed her!" Pete snarled.

"What? That's surprising to you?" Sora's tone was laced with sarcasm as he watched the feline.

"Then…wait… it's not that silver-haired brat? Or the red-haired girl? Damn, you sure are tiny for a Keyblade wielder." Sora felt a tick develop in his eyebrow.

"Tiny?" he asked.

"Then you must be the Keyblade wielder who lost all his memories!" sky-blue eyes narrowed a bit.

"I have my memories back, thank you very much," he stated. Sora took in a faintly deep breath as Pete looked him over.

"Since when did da King pick such a munchkin, and a twelve-year-old, to wield the Keyblade?" Riku felt, rather than saw, the anger in Sora at the statement.

"I AM _FIFTEEN_ , DAMMIT!" Kairi felt her eyes grow wide as Sora gritted his teeth to reign in the sudden flair of aggression.

"Well, how was I supposed to know? You look like a glass doll, compared to those other Keyblade wielders I've heard about," Pete stated.

"Yea well… the Keyblade chose me! Not the other way around…" Pete blinked in surprise.

"The Kingdom Key chose you? Wait, then… you're the chosen one. You have the silver Kingdom Key….and that means…" Pete narrowed his eyes as he looked at Sora.

"Wait… what are you talking about?" Sora asked.

"The one destined to do in the Master! And the one who… oh… this isn't good… _you gotta be related to him_ , then…." Sky-blue eyes narrowed.

"Who in the hell are you talking about?" asked the brunette.

Pete looked him over momentarily, as Kairi and Riku tried to gather a firm grasp on what was happening. It was clear that Sora hadn't heard about any of these details, and while it was news to them, what startled the duo even more was Sora's sudden series of swear words he had been letting slip. Kairi was stunned to see Sora actually angry, and Riku was dumbfounded at the boy's swearing. It sounded unnatural coming from someone as sweet-tempered as Sora, of all people. However, judging by Donald and Goofy's battle stances, they both knew it was something serious, and even more so was Pete's sudden statement of a relation to someone.

"I see it now… you look just like _him!_ Ooh… the Master and Maleficent aren't going to like this! To think you're his offspring… and your appearance… you must have their blood in your veins… to think one of them is still alive…" Pete moved to leave, and Sora drew the Kingdom Key in a lightning fast motion.

Kairi and Riku hardly had the time to see it happen, before he had Pete halted complete with the Kingdom Key at his throat. Pete stepped back as he looked into sky-blue eyes, before backing up further until he was cornered by Donald and Goofy. Kairi heard the faint hum of a Keyblade being summoned, as Way to the Dawn was formed in Riku's hand and he moved forward to help. Taking in a deep breath, Kairi drew Destiny's Embrace and stepped in place next to Sora with her Keyblade pointed towards Pete, who was now circled entirely.

"Care to explain who you are referring to?" asked Riku.

"I don't have a reason to talk to ya! No, I won't! The Master will do in the precious Hikari of the King soon enough." Pete felt a cold sensation seep into his feet, and the others jumped back as a black mass swallowed him whole.

"What… just happened?" asked Kairi.

"Someone opened a door to darkness…" Sora vanished his Keyblade and looked to the others.

"Nice to see you can use your Keyblade still," said Donald.

"Of course, I can use it! I'm not an invalid just because I was sleeping for a year!" sky-blue eyes gleamed playfully.

"Alright, what do we do now?" Sora eyed the others.

"We need to go into the town, it's freezing and I'm sure night will be here before we know it," Sora stated.

"That's probably a good idea. Come on…"

 **{St. Petersburg: 2:45pm}**

The snow crunched and cracked beneath the feet of the five people as they walked into the bustling city of St. Petersburg. The place was busy with people rushing about, working or shopping as the group walked through the area, making sure to stay close to one another as people spoke in rushed tones around them in the icy air, while the worn, slick cobblestone streets were making it slightly difficult to walk while they searched for a place to stay and hopefully get something to eat.

"It's so busy," stated Donald.

"Yea, it's really crazy here…" Sora looked around the place trying to read the signs on the buildings.

"Donald, can you cast a language spell? I don't think I have the energy to do that," he said as the duck nodded.

"Alright…" with a wave of his staff, the strange words that had filtered in the air, became clearer and more prominent as the group finally found themselves able to understand the language spoken in this world.

"I can understand them," Kairi stated.

"Donald casted a language spell so we can ask them about where an Inn and a place to eat is. Donald? Goofy? Did you guys bring munny?" the two nodded.

"King Mickey gave us plenty of munny incase we needed it. So, it's not a problem, and I already cast the exchange spell so that it'll turn into the currency used in this world." Sora nodded.

"Okay, so… um excuse me sir!" the boy rushed forward, making sure to keep the hood of his coat on his head as he approached the man in a uniform.

"Yes, what can I do for you child?" he inquired.

"My friends and I are travelers, we've never been to St. Petersburg before, and we haven't been able to find an Inn and a place to get food for ourselves." The man looked him over.

"Where are you from?" he asked him.

"Warmer lands, we came here to learn…" the man hummed, eyeing the group.

"Strange travelers. And why the girl?" the boy swallowed nervously.

"She's my fiancé. Can you please tell us where an Inn and place to get something to eat is?" the other sighed.

"Down the street and to the left is a hotel and two taverns. You and your companions should be warm and well fed there," he stated.

"Thank you, sir." Sora walked away, and the man rose an eyebrow at him.

"What an unusual boy," he muttered.

It was some fifteen minutes later, that the group had managed to maneuver through the crowds and towards the hotel and two taverns. Donald and Goofy split up at that point, Sora sticking with Kairi and Captain of the Knights while Riku and Donald went to secure them a room to share for the next two days to be safe. From there, the group of five directed themselves into the nearest tavern, being quick to order a hearty stew and hot cups of coffee to warm themselves up as they sat by the fire. Their food arrived a few moments after they'd sat down, and the group had quickly dug in, being thankful that the meal was surprisingly good, and for Sora, it was especially good, seeing as it hadn't actually eaten anything in roughly a year.

Riku glanced at the boy as he took his time, noticing how he was taking his time in eating, and breaking to take sips of the coffee offered to them as he ate his own food while Donald and Goofy did the same, glancing around them as a small old lady sat nearby, her gaze on them in a slightly unnerving unmoving state. It didn't take long for the others to realize they were being watched by the woman, at which point, Sora glanced her way and she bowed her head, causing great confusion to overcome the five of them as she raised her hand, placing the tip of her first finger to the center of her forehead as she closed her eyes, almost as though she was about to draw a cross over herself, but she never did.

"Can we help you?" asked Donald.

"Donald! Don't be rude!" the Court Magician frowned as the elderly woman smiled.

"No need child, I am much accustomed to such behavior from strangers," she stated as Sora frowned.

"I'm sorry about him, he's overly protective, and tends to not know when to apply the filter between his brain and mouth…" sky-blue eyes glanced to Donald pointedly and the magical duck huffed.

"You have lovely eyes child, pure and true," the woman stated as Sora turned to look to her.

"Hmm? Oh, um… thank you…" she shook her head.

"No need, I am one who can see a person's true self. It is a gift of mine… what I see within you is great power… however, I also sense much turmoil and pain… from things you have experienced, and fears you harbor. In this, I witness the future before you… and it is both incredibly wonderous, and terrifying. Fraught with suffering and pain, but guided by light, and a power that will not lose…" the group tensed.

"What do you mean by all of that?" asked Kairi.

"Ignore her, she's a fake." The woman frowned, and Sora looked her over.

"No… she's not. You're a witch or something akin to that, aren't you?" he inquired as she smiled.

"Indeed, I am. The things that I said are the truth… a nigh unbelievable mixture of many things reside within you, and in your future, you will be faced with the mirror of yourself, and the two reflections shall decide what the worlds will become… that is what I see in you boy." Sora blinked, taking in the information, even though deep within himself, he wanted desperately to doubt her words, but he knew he couldn't.

"Are you sure? I'm just a normal person," he mentioned.

"Child, I am old, not foolish… I have seen your kind before… Bearer of the Keyblade. One of seven chosen to guide the way… you are not the first I have witnessed." Donald and Goofy went on guard.

"How did you know about the Keyblade?" they asked.

"All I can suggest to you, children… is to guard your hearts… one may never know when it will be the defining thing that will spare your life." With that, she placed a coin on the table, got up, and walked away.

"Okay… I'm not keen on the eerie old ladies," Kairi admitted.

"You and me both… what do you think she meant by all that?" Riku glanced to Sora.

"Who knows, but I would be careful all the same… someone in this world knows we have the Keyblade, that's enough to tell us we need to be careful," he stated.

"Yea… I can agree with you there."

 **{Hotel Room: 7:00pm}**

Laying their coats down near the fireplace to dry alongside their socks and shoes after walking in the snow for so long, the group of five began to prepare themselves for the night ahead, Donald deciding the send a message to King Mickey to inform him that Sora was safe, and they would need assistance in departing due to the Gummi Ship having been destroyed in the crash landing. Riku was sitting near the window, Kairi on the bed while Sora was lying stretched out near the fireplace, arms folded behind his head as he propped one of his legs on top of the other, eyes closed as he remained relaxed, soaking in the heat of the fire while Goofy went to the small sofa to lay down, tired from the long day like the rest of them were. Cyan eyes glanced towards the chestnut-haired teenager, his expression slightly confused as he eyed Sora's form.

The boy was wearing a black tank top which had been folded into the deep blue shirt he had been wearing earlier, his gloves were gone, laying near his coat alongside his scarf long sleeve shirt and boots, while he still wore the black jeans he'd had on since they'd left the laboratory. As Riku eyed him, he took in the boy's relaxed state, and also the slight muscular form of his arms and body. Sora had always been scrawny, lithe, and gangly; however, the last year and a half had clearly done wonders for him, because it didn't take much to realize that Sora was still tiny as always, but most certainly had lither muscular form. Laughing a bit, Riku was met with confusion from the others, and then saw the chestnut- haired boy glance to him, sky-blue eyes glowing in the firelight.

"What's so funny?" asked Kairi as Riku shook his head.

"How much has changed. Look at us… we're so different." Sora hummed, stretching out a bit before returning to his prior pose.

"Not really… I mean… we're a bit older, and have more experience with how the universe works… but not much else has changed," he mentioned as Riku looked him over.

"That's so untrue its not even funny." Sky-blue met cyan.

"What are you talking about?" he questioned, tilting his head just a bit as the silver-haired teenager eyed him.

"Sora, you've changed a lot." The boy sat up, raising an eyebrow.

"Huh?" Kairi, Donald, and Goofy remained silent as Riku sighed.

"Physically you're stronger, I can see that all that fighting built your body up some, your voice is different, you're taller, your hair color even changed, not to mention your personality did as well," Riku pointed out as Sora frowned, folding his arms across his chest.

"Well… yea, I'm a bit stronger and of course I built up some muscle through all that fighting, who wouldn't? I'm almost sixteen, so my voice changing isn't too farfetched, same for me being taller." Kairi looked him over.

"Your hair color isn't that chocolate shade anymore either, it's a chestnut shade now, reddish brown with blonde and orange tones in it… and your personality is different," she informed him. Sora huffed, falling back onto the ground as he took in a deep breath.

"A lot happened… the entire thing from when we were split up once the islands were destroyed… that was one thing, I mean… hell, we were like what? Thirteen and fourteen years old? Castle Oblivion was a nightmare… what I remember of it at least… and each world had a different struggle too… it wasn't easy… so of course I changed… I had too so I could survive, and find you guys." Riku frowned.

"What happened? Can you talk to us about it?" he asked as Sora took in a deep breath, thinking about how to discuss the information of that first adventure.

"Things were difficult… even in Traverse Town… I got pretty beaten up, but thankfully some of our friends healed me… Wonderland was where I learned that Keyblade Bearers aren't well received in all worlds… Deep Jungle… that was one of the worst though… well… before I got to the other ones at least, and they had their own troubles." Kairi looked him over.

"What happened in Deep Jungle?" she asked as Sora frowned.

"The better question would be what didn't happen? We got split up, I got shot, we were constantly attacked, and I ended up having to kill someone…" the boy kept his eyes on the ceiling, sensing the dread and shock his two friends felt at that information.

"Back up! You were shot?" Riku probed as the boy got himself up and pulled his shirt up a fraction, showing them the scar on his abdomen, and the black star-like mark as well.

"Yea, and it wasn't a clean shot unfortunately… it hurt like hell… but thanks to Doctor Porter, I recovered in no time… after that, Clayton, the man who shot me, was possessed by a Heartless, and I had to kill him… technically he was already dead though…" Sora sat back down, tugging at the hem of his tank top for a moment as Riku looked him over.

"Its hard to imagine someone like you killing another person. I mean, you come from a family of doctors and medical professionals… you were taught to try and save someone before ever giving up, but…" Sora shrugged.

"Sometimes there's not enough time or its impossible and you have to make a judgment call. I didn't want to do it, and it messed me up for a long time… but I've had to kill people since then… its stopped bothering me for the most part by now," he admitted as Kairi looked down.

"You shouldn't be used to it though… that's not who you are Sora." Sky-blue eyes glanced to the side.

"I'm not who I used to be… Kairi… I'm not that kid you knew from the islands anymore… that part of me isn't really there…. because I had to choose if I was going to be weak, or if I was going to fight and accept my fate as a Keyblade Bearer…" Riku turned his attention to his friend.

"You chose to become a Keyblade Bearer, and stomach things you didn't agree with," he stated as Sora nodded.

"I did it because I wanted to protect the ones I love… Riku… Kairi… the two of you are on the same path I am now… you'll have to choose what to do when faced with things you don't agree with as well… things that will hurt you, make you question yourself, and cause you a lot of grief and doubt… but now that you've chosen to become Keyblade Wielders… there's nothing to be done about it. You have to accept your fate…" Riku nodded.

"We know that… so don't worry about it. We're in this together, whether you like it or not," he stated as Sora sent them a small smile.

"It's not going to be easy… so… just prepare yourself." Kairi moved off the bed and sat down next to Sora.

"Maybe, but you're not alone… so that's a bonus, right?" Sora smiled.

"Yea, thanks guys."

 **{…}**

 _I'll come back, when you call me…_

 **{….}**

 **Author's Note:** Dear sweet lord! I am so sorry guys, I've been super busy, and I've been trying to get to a breaking point with Millennium World: Midnight Script because that story is nearly 200 chapters. I'll try to do some randomized updates here and there, but I won't be doing any for a few more weeks as I'm about to go on vacation, and will have to do catch-up writing for several stories. Wish me luck and tell me what you think!

Sincerely,

ShadowDragon94.


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